Not My Will, but Yours Lord

 

Luke 22:42-43 "Father, if you are willing take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done. An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him."

In Luke 22:42-43, Jesus was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, asking God to take away the suffering that was coming upon him. He said "yet not my will, but yours be done". Wow, that is powerful to me. If Jesus prayed to God if it is your will not mine, then how much more are we to pray and ask our Heavenly Father the same thing, not my will but yours. 

It is hard to let go of what our will and desires are for our life. It can be anything from a new job, healing, relationships, car, house, or anything we are desiring. When we pray about it we need to remember to ask the Lord if it is his will, not our will. I'm not saying you shouldn't ask God for things, God wants us to ask him for anything and everything. But, when we let go and ask him for his will, we are surrendering to him, and trusting in him.

1 John 5:14-15 "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him."

In Matthew 6:9-10 Jesus teaches us how we should pray. This prayer is called "The Lord's Prayer". Verses 9-10: "This then is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

In this part of the prayer, Jesus is again instructing us to pray and ask our Heavenly Father for his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. When we pray and ask God for his will, not our  will, then it takes away any pride in us. 

If you have been praying for something and God hasn't answered your prayer in the way you have hoped. Don't give up. Rest in the assurance of knowing that God loves you. He knows what you need when you need it. When you pray for God's will to be done, not yours, and wait upon his perfect timing. God will open up new doors of opportunities and answer your prayers in ways that you've never imagined. 

Matthew 6:8 "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus."

Strength

Habakkuk 3:19 "The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights."

Life right now can weigh heavily on your heart and mind. Keep your heart and mind open to the Lord, he will protect you from the darkness that is all around you. The battle you face is a spiritual battle. The battle belongs to the Lord. He will give you the strength that you need to get through each day, each trial, and to make the right decisions.

The Lord's strength is all you need. When you place all your trust, and surrender all of yourself to the Lord, He will rescue you. He will take you higher; higher than you can go on your own. He will bring you peace and calm, through the most difficult times in your life. 

1 Samuel 17:47 "All those gathered here will know that it isn't by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands."

2 Chronicles 20:15 ".....for the battle is not yours, but God's."

Psalm 29:11 "The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace."

Luke 9:23 "Then he said to them all; "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me."

Whatever battle you face in your life, don't rely on your own strength. Call out to the Lord, he will give you strength in your weakness, and the confidence to win the fight against the powers of darkness. Then, you will experience his love, peace and calmness through all the chaos. 

2 Corinthians 12:9 "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

Open Eyes, Open Heart

 

Acts 26:18 "to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me."

Ephesians 4:18 "They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts."

If you are living your life with your eyes and your heart closed off from God, then you are living in darkness. When your heart is closed off to God (hardened), that gives Satan an open door to get into your mind, and whisper in your ear encouraging you to give in to worldly desires to satisfy your flesh. 

Living in darkness keeps you from receiving true love, joy, peace and forgiveness, which only comes from the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan wants to keep you as far away from the light of Jesus Christ as he can. He knows as soon as you receive the precious, perfect gift of salvation through Jesus, he has lost his hold on you.

John 8:12 "When Jesus spoke again to the people he said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

John 10:28 "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand."

The Bible tells us that God's word is alive and active. If your eyes are closed and your heart is hardened, then you won't be able to see God, or allow God to work in your life. When you hear God's word, his word will flow towards your heart, but because your heart is hardened, it bounces back. Kind of like a bouncy ball when it hits the floor and bounces up and keeps bouncing until it finally runs out of surfaces to bounce off of. 

But, since God's word is alive and active, it doesn't stop bouncing! Even though God's word didn't penetrate into your heart right away. Doesn't mean that God's word has lost its power. The Holy Spirit will work to soften the "soil" of your heart. The word of God is like a seed. In time, the seed of God will plant itself into your heart and it will grow and lead you to salvation and healing. 

Matthew 13:15 "For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them."

Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing souls and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

As I was writing this post the praise and worship song *"Open the Eyes of My Heart", popped into my mind. The main verse of the song is, "Open the eyes of my heart Lord, open the eyes of my heart, I want to see you....." Basically, what this verse means is, if you ask the Lord to open the eyes of your heart, you will see him. 

Obviously, your heart doesn't have eyes, but it means when you open yourself to the Lord, and expect to "see" him, the Lord will come into your life. The Lord desires to have a relationship with you, no matter what you have done in your past. He doesn't care about what kind of house you live in, or what job you have, he loves and cares about you just the way you are. None of us deserve the precious gift of salvation that Jesus Christ has given us, but by his blood we are cleansed and forgiven. 

Ephesians 1:18 "I pray that the eyes of your heart will be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people."

*Open the Eyes of My Heart written by Paul Baloche in 1997. 

Waves of Forgiveness, Waves of Repentance

 

Luke 17:3-4 "So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying "I repent", you must forgive them.

Just as waves build up across the water, so does our sin. We tend to allow things in our life to build up, and unintentionally it builds up so much that we hit a crashing point and it flows out of us in a sinful way.  

When this happens, we need to be quick to realize our sin, and repent. Repent means to turn away from sin/wrongdoing and feel deep remorse for it. Then, we need to ask for forgiveness, first to the Lord then, to the person (s) that we sinned against. Even if it is one sin or several sins. Once a day or several times a day, week or month. (Waves of Repentance)

Also, we need to be quick to forgive others when they sin against us. Even if its several times a day, week or month that they come to us to ask for our forgiveness. We all have "those" days when everything seems to go the wrong way, and we lose it, and unfortunately fall into sin. (Waves of Forgiveness)

Matthew 18:21-22 "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times? " Jesus answered, not seven times but seventy-seven times."

Acts 3:19 "Repent, then, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord."

Each of us are sinners. The Bible tells us that all of us fall short of God's glory, because of our sin.(Romans 3:23) No matter how "good" we view ourselves, we are still sinners. It's only by the blood of Jesus Christ that we are forgiven and cleansed from our sins. 

Romans 3:23-24 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came from Christ Jesus."

Each of us are responsible to participate in both the waves of forgiveness and waves of repentance. The Bible tells us that we need to forgive others just as our Father in Heaven has forgiven us. It is our responsibility to repent as soon as we realize our sin. 

If we wait, to do either one, then the unforgiven sin, and the unrepented sin, will just build up and cause division in our lives. It will separate us from our relationship to the Lord, and cause issues in our relationships with the people in our lives as well. We will also lose our peace, and it could cause bitterness to build up in our hearts.

Ephesians 4:32 "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

Isaiah 59:2 "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear."

Hidden Things

 

Daniel 2:22 " He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him."

When I hear hidden things, it makes me think about the books for kids that have hidden pictures inside the main picture. We all have hidden things in our heart. A lot of the time we don't even know or realize what we have hidden inside of us, but God knows. We look one way on the outside, but on the inside we may look different because of the "hidden things".

The Bible is very clear that all of us fall short of the glory of God, because each of us are sinners. God gave us his only Son Jesus Christ so that we can be forgiven of our sins. His blood that he shed for us upon the cross washes away our sins. He gave us a choice, to choose life or to choose death. 

Romans 3:23-24 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."

John 11:25-26 "Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, even though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

Choosing life is when you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. It's also called salvation and being born again. When you ask Jesus Christ to save you will have eternal life. Choosing death is when you choose to stay right where you are, not choosing Jesus Christ. When you die, you will not have eternal life you will have eternal death. 

John 3:36 "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."

When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then the hidden things inside of you will be revealed to you by the Holy Spirit. The Lord will help you heal from the hidden past hurts and hidden past sins inside of you. There are sins that you have committed that you may not even know of or remember, until the Lord reveals it to you. 

When you are going through the healing process, it may not be easy. The devil will whisper lies in your ear, to try to make you feel guilty and unworthy of forgiveness. He wants you to hold on to past sins and bitterness. He will try to make you doubt your salvation. Don't listen to those lies. Hold on to the truth of Jesus, pray and read the word of God. 

Psalm 90:8 "You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence."

Romans 8:1-2 "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death."

Living Life With God First

  

Living Life With God First 

**This post came to me as God speaking it. 

It's not hard to live your life with me first. Remember I am the one who gave you life. I am the one who wakes you up each morning. I am the one who provides. I am the one who heals. I am the Great I Am.

Exodus 3:14 "God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you."

I am the God of the impossible. I am the God of miracles. Seek me first in the morning. Seek me first before making decisions, whether its relationships, financial or for pleasure. I am the Lord God Almighty. Do not be afraid to seek me. Do not be afraid to ask me for whatever you need.

I already know your needs. I am waiting for you to knock at my door, when you knock I will open the door. It may not always be what you expected, but I the Lord know what you need, and when you need it.

Matthew 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

Matthew 6:8 "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Luke 11:9-10 "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks the door will be opened."

When you keep me first, I will calm the storm when your life is like a whirlwind. For I am God and nothing is impossible for me. When you keep me first, I will provide for your every need. Whether your need is for food, shelter or work.

When you keep me first I will bring you peace through every trial, every illness, and every sorrow, even in the times of waiting. I know it seems like I'm not with you while you wait, but I am. I will never leave you or forsake you. I will bring you not only my peace but my strength as well. 

Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

I learn a lot through each post that God has me write. This post has made me realize, that I'm not seeking God first in every part of my life, like I thought I was! Especially, when I'm feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening around me.

It's easy to try to do things in our life on our own. We get in our mind that we need to have something done RIGHT NOW!  When in reality, most things can wait. If we seek the Lord first, then we will know what He wants us to do, not what we think we should do!

It doesn't take a lot of time to seek the Lord to ask Him to give you his wisdom to guide you in the right path, no matter if its a big decision or a small one. God cares about every part of your life. Keep God first, and see how your life changes for the good. 

Are You Ready? Part 2

Part 2

Revelation 3:10 "Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth."

Luke 21:34 "Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap."

In part 1, I shared some of my testimony. I wasn't real sure why I felt that God wanted me to share it for this post. I prayed about it, then the answer came to me. Before the pastor came to my door and asked me, "If you were to die today where do you think you would go? To Heaven or to Hell?" I thought I would go to Heaven because I felt that I was good person. I believed in God, I love and care about people. But, I realized that I would've gone to Hell if I would've died before that day! 

I have tears in my eyes as I write this. I thought I was okay. I thought that everyone who was a "good person" (including myself) went to Heaven. I was totally wrong! There is only one way to Heaven. That one way is through Jesus Christ. He lived a perfect sinless life of 33 years on earth. He died for me, a sinner. He didn't deserve to be tortured and die. But because of His love, Jesus took my place upon the cross. 

Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners Christ died for us."

I don't deserve salvation. I know there is nothing I can do to earn it. The only way that I am saved, is by faith in Jesus Christ. By his precious blood that he shed upon the cross I am cleansed of my sins, and found righteous before God. 

Jesus died not only for me, but for you as well. It's not too late to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. But, I believe we are living in the end times. No one knows the time or day when Jesus will return. In Luke 21:34 (scripture above) it warns us to not be unprepared. We need to keep our focus first on the kingdom of God, second on things in the world. 

Matthew 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you."

Are you ready to choose eternal life? Are you ready to choose joy? Peace through trials? A hope for your future? Are you ready to choose Jesus as your Lord and Savior? If your answer is yes, you have made the most important and best decision of your whole life! 

If you are ready, all you need to do is pray to the Lord and ask Him to forgive you of all of your sins. Ask Jesus Christ to come into your life, and accept him as your Lord and Savior. 

After you commit your life to Jesus you will be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will guide your life, and help you grow in your relationship to Jesus. It's important to pray everyday, read the Bible and find a church whose beliefs line up with the word of God. Pray and ask God to lead you to right church, where he wants you to be. 

Romans 10:9 "If you declare with your mouth that, "Jesus is Lord", and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask for you to bless each person who is reading this right now. I pray for each person who has just accepted your Son Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, that you will protect them and lead them in the right direction for their life. Fill them with your Holy Spirit, so that they will be a light for you in the world. I thank you for your gift of salvation. I thank you for you your great love that you pour out upon us. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 

**If you have any questions please feel free to email me at wordstobless@yahoo.com, or message me through my Kerri's Korner FaceBook, and/or Instagram pages. Thank You!