Failure and Success

"Many of life's failures are by people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." -Thomas Edison


"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." -Philippians 4:13

By his own admission Thomas Edison, the "wizard of Menlo Park" had over 10,000 failures in his quest to invent various devices. In his lifetime he was credited with 1,093 inventions including the carbon telephone transmitter, motion picture machine, electric power station, and the flouroscope. He was credited with inventing the first light bulb, which he did not, however he did invent the first commercially practical incandescent light. 

Edison was not discouraged by failure; to him an unsuccessful test was considered a step towards discovery and ultimate success.  
God's Word contains the same message for us; we are encouraged repeatedly not to become "discouraged or dismayed", as we keep our eyes fixed on Yeshua and take that next step.
Beloved, if you find yourself tired,discouraged, and feel like throwing in the towel, look up and remember that "if God is for us, then who can be against us"!

One Step At A Time

Don Finto, a much revered man of God in my community, was once asked how he was able to sustain his walk with God decade after decade and not fall away. His response was simple, yet truly profound: "I keep my gaze fixed on Jesus and take one step at a time."

"And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying,“Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”Peter said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt? -Matt.14:25-31

Peter responded to his Savior's call and did just fine as he kept his eyes on the LORD and moved forward, step by step. When his focused changed--the scriptures read that "he saw the wind" and the white-capped waves; his natural man's experiences and the circumstances of the moment told him that what he was doing was impossible. Immediately he sank (fell away) from walking with Jesus, until the Master came to his rescue and took hold of him. Yeshua's very first words to Peter were,"You of little faith, why did you doubt?"
When Yeshua beckons us to come to Him, beloved, we can step forward with assurance and the faith of a child, our gaze fixed on Him. He promises never to leave or forsake us as we sojourn with intentionality and perseverance. Step by step, moment by moment, day after day as the years go by we run, our eyes constantly on Him  as we weather tribulations and trials until we finally hear the words, "Welcome home."

Childlike

"Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again."
-John 3:3 NIV

"Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

-Mark 10:15 NIV

Moving through childhood, the teenage years and into adulthood is not the same thing as becoming mature. There are many positive experiences and teachable moments a person goes through that may help shape them, but there are also many experiences that wound and scar, bringing doubt, cynicism, fear, and mistrust. These experiences are the basis for the paradigm (an emotional operating system) that we come to process life through. This was the darkened lens that I saw life through; I trusted almost no one and "faith" was an unknown word to me. Cynicism and doubt were the signposts on the path I travelled on.

But when I finally saw the emptiness of atheism and my previous way of life, when I was "born-again", I truly became like a little child. As I feasted on the Word of God, faith sprung up in me. As I read my red letter bible (the words of Jesus) I knew in my heart, in my spirit, that these were the most important of life's truths. Maturity happens over time as we trust our heavenly Father, hearing and  obeying His voice. Trusting and obeying God doesn't always mean that I understand His purposes at that time. But I trust-I know- that  if He's watching over the birds of the air and the flowers of the fields, beloved, then He is holding us in the same palms of His hands on which our names are engraved.

The Discipline of Patience

"The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. 

Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran."

Gen.12:1-4
When the LORD  spoke to Abraham I wonder if Abraham realized how long he'd be waiting.

There are no objections, doubts, or questions from Abraham recorded in this passage.
God promised to make him a great nation-which meant that he and Sarah would be having children,and Abraham believed Him...ah, but patience. God never specified at this time when these things would happen; the wait would seem to stretch on endlessly. They seem to have persevered well for the first 12 years, but then Sarah buckled. Sometimes I wonder if Abraham's patience would've held out if Sarah hadn't doubted God's promise, instead proposing the not-so-bright idea of handing over Hagar to Abraham. This classic example of doubting God, giving into disobedience and impulsive hair-brained schemes is manifested today across the earth. To me it ranks as the worst sin against God right behind the Fall.  The outcome of this choice brought forth Ishmael. As Hagar was told by the Angel: "Ishmael and his descendants will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against his brothers forever." 

Sarah's patience ran out 12 years after God made His promise to Abraham, but it was 25 years before they saw the fruition of the promise with the birth of Isaac. 

Consider how long they waited. Would I even have been able to wait as long as Sarah did before doubting God, becoming discouraged and improvising a plan of my own making to "help" God? Honestly I doubt it; I have difficulty waiting on God for the answers. 

Patience is one of the most difficult disciplines to embrace, especially in this "instant" everything world we live in, and yet as believers it ranks among the most valuable and important. 

We must learn to be still and wait for his sometimes still-small-voice before we launch out in perhaps a totally wrong direction with possibly devastating consequences.

Beloved, if you are faced with difficult decisions, resist impulsive knee-jerk choices; 

be still, nix all distractions and listen. 

He sees every situation and need, including all of yours. 
Have faith, beloved, and trust that He is God.

Above

Are you living under your circumstances or above them?

This sounds so cliché, I know. You might say, "That's easy for you to say! You have no idea what I'm going through." Perhaps I might not know exactly what your particular trials may be, but I've had (have) plenty of my own.
One of the most important things I've come to know is this:

"What, then, shall we say in response to these things? 
If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31

The "if" in this scripture is rhetorical; God is for us; because God is for us our mouths should be filled with continual thanksgiving and praise to Him. Grumbling and complaining is actually the same as speaking death instead of life. If our testimonies and the blood of the Lamb is the prescription for overcoming, then meditating on being under the circumstances and vocalizing such through grumbling and complaining are in fact anti-testimonies.
God is pleased when our faith is evident:

"May these words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 19:14

Beloved, you are made for life above your circumstances, whatever they may be, so be encouraged and convinced!

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Romans 8:37-39

The Enigma of Prayer Life

"Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray." James 5:13

"...pray continually." ! Thess.5:17

Over and over again in God's Word we are directed to pray.
More than 600 times we are encouraged and directed by the Prophets, Apostles, disciples, and by Jesus Himself, over and over again, 
about the need to pray, and the myriad reasons to pray. 

It is a direct line, a lifeline, to God Himself:
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7

But here is the crazy thing about so many who love the Lord with all their hearts but  yet have difficulty praying:
“We tend to use prayer as a last resort, but God wants it to be our first line of defense. We pray when there's nothing else we can do, but God wants us to pray before we do anything at all." - Oswald Chambers

This debacle is one of my own personal challenges-my natural desire is to be a "Martha", busying myself with work. It is only through being intentional about prayer life that brings me to His feet like Mary, petitioning and listening for His voice, that I am able to overcome "Martha-itis"

Whatever the need-protection, provision, healing, salvation-every and any situation-prayer is the key. It does us no good as just a concept though-we must use it. 
So let us not make prayer the last resort, beloved, but rather the first order of business.

The urgent request of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect. James 5:16b

Filters

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind."
John 1:1-4

And he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 18:3

These words in the Gospel of John were the first words I read as a brand new baby believer, a "child" of God.
After I received and believed Yeshua (Jesus) as my Messiah and Master,
I asked God for the wisdom to understand the entirety of the Word, and I did.
The Word took root and was watered by the Holy Spirit. Receiving my Messiah though ahd taken 29 years. I wasn't born an atheist but I over time I developed  bad"filters"- layers of them: cynicism, anger, unbelief, scientific "enlightenment", and so many other things that put scales on my eyes, hardened my heart, and made me deaf to the voice of the Shepherd- keeping me from believing in and  knowing the God of the Universe, who just happened to be my Father (in Heaven) as well. When I confessed Yeshua as my Savior all of those bad filters fell away. As an "unfiltered child" I was able to see the fullness of all  Yeshua is - the Word made flesh, the embodiment of light and the Life of all men. There are good filters and bad filters, some "filters" need to be developed, principally those associated with maturing in our faith. However, there are some filters we need to guard against, the ones that allow doubt and cynicism to sprout like weeds;  we need to remain like little children. 

Are the wrong "filters" robbing you from experiencing the fullness of what God has for you right now, beloved?
Repent and ask God to "reset" your filters, bringing refreshment and renewal.

Staying At It

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." - James 1:2

Just a few days ago, resolutions were made, vows taken,
but already some of us may have slipped off the track.
Time has "gotten away" from us,
life in this hectic culture we are journeying through can just zip by...
suddenly the day is passed and as we climb into the momentary comfort of our beds
we realize with frustration and disappointment that we failed to fulfill
the day's installment of the whole-hearted commitment we just made.
My word for you friends is STAY AT IT!
Don't be discouraged or dismayed.
If God repeatedly had to cheer on the heroes of our faith (which He did) then
we are in great company.
The perseverance message-the call to STAY AT IT-
is the message woven throughout Hebrews 11,
the recounting of some experiences of those in the "great cloud of witnesses".
Don't be derailed by fear, doubt, and discouragement...
these insidious dynamics are hell-sent and hell-bent.
They smell like smoke.
Faith in the Lord, courage (He promises that He is with us,
never leaving or foresaking us),
and supernatural strength that increases
in the face of natural weakness
are the engines that will drive perseverance
in each of us as we draw near to Jesus constantly, abiding in Him.
See you at the finish line!

(My) Resolutions (Revised)

Well my friends, another year is upon us. Happy New Year!

With every new year seems to come a flurry of resolutions.
I define "resolution" as a well-meant wish, but lacking true "resolve", commitment.
This year I want things to be different...I feel it needs to be different, really changed up.
This life is not a game, and needs to be lived with a much greater level of  intentionality. 
Grace abounds thankfully, but when we stand before him we will be judged by the things we did-and the things we failed to do, which I personally believe affects where we actually reside in Heaven and what our "rank" will be.
God's Holy and very personal Word to us-is an owner's manual and love letter-and  has much to say to us, both individually and corporately.
Below I have listed some life verses of mine. I revised it to include repentance and every believer's responsibility to share the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus the Messiah.
I hope they direct, correct, guide, teach, inspire, encourage, and cheer you onwards and upwards:

Love God above all else at all times, not just in word, but in deed: 
"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind- Deut.:6:5a, Luke 10:27a, Matt. 27:37a, Mark 12:30a, 


Love others much:
"...and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself."
Deut 6:5b, Luke 10:27b, Matt27:37b, Mark 12:30b
(Personal note:Commandments 3-10 would not need to be stated if we all fully embraced the first two all the time!)

Keep Him lifted high and and preeminent( our utmost for His Highest) always:
"...And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy." Col. 1:18


Repentance:
"Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place." Rev.2:5
"Therefore repent and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped out, that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.  Acts 3:19

Have Faith:
"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."
Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Romans 10:17
See also Matt.:17:20, Matt.:21:21, Hebrews 11:1-39, 1 Cor. 16:13

Forgive much as you yourself have been forgiven:
"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  
But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."
Matt.: 6:14-15
"And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins. " Mark 11:25

Be joyful at all times:
"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice!" Phil.:4:4
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds

James 1:2
Also read Gal.:5:22, Proverbs 17:22, 1Peter 1:8

Be thankful:
Give thanks in everything, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.  1Thess.5:18
“giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Eph.5:20

Grace-receive it and freely extend it towards others:

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. 2Cor.12:9

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. 1Peter 4:10

Extend mercy:

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:36

Seek wisdom:

"Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the LORD and shun evil. Prov.3:7

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. James 3:17

Perseverance:
"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." James 1:12
"By standing firm you will gain life." Luke 21:19

Have courage:
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." Deut.31:6

He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. Psalm 112:7

Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD. Psalm 27:14

Walk in humility:

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Phil 2:3

Fulfill the Great Commission/Share the Good News:

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..." Matt.28:19

"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile." Romans 1:16

Beloved, this year and every year live intentionally with these words hidden deeply in our hearts, every moment remembering that we were redeemed and ransomed at great expense from death and eternal punishment-a punishment we fully deserved.

Have a truly God-blessed year!

The Problem With Success

Megalomania:
-Obsession with the exercise of power, especially in regards to the domination of others.
- Delusion about one's own power or importance.

"Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."
Proverbs 16:18

How would you describe success?

Webster's says this: 
The accomplishment of an aim or purpose, the attainment of popularity or profit.
Synonyms: prosperity, affluence, wealth, riches, opulence.The website, I AM SECOND, actually lists “Success” as a stumbling block, along with addictions, emotional dysfunctions, etc..
Who doesn't want to be"successful"?
The defination in Webster's definition sounds great;
there is nothing wrong with any facet of success, in and of itself.

The problem with success lies with what is going on in the heart of the sucessful.

David and Solomon started out great, their hearts were fixed on abiding with God and obeying Him, but as they grew more and more successful
pride grew in their hearts and they got their priorities all mixed up. 
They came to think that they were actually the ones pulling the strings;
they thought they actually were in charge,
instead of the King of the Universe.
They began to scorn God's word.

The resulting consequences were ugly.

There is nothing new under the sun.
Success has a way of puffing up those who have been blessed.
The challenge of those blessed with success is to pursue humility, recognizing that God is higher than they are, and is the One from whom all blessings flow.

"Do nothing out of vain conceit.
Rather, in humility value others above yourselves."
Phil. 2:3
Scorn not God, or success itself, but rather scorn the worship of success-
be vigilant and don't let it become an idol.

The pride of success brings a downfall,

but as we walk in humility before the LORD- keeping Him alone preeminent, beloved, He  promises to lift us up.

Looking Up

"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
Deut:31:8

There is a very good reason why the Lord  tells us repeatedly not to be discouraged. Discouragement and depression of the spirit actually causes our attitude, our gaze, to be pulled downwards. Discouragement, a primary weapon of our enemy, seeks to cause us to lose our "vision". We might feel like we are facing seemingly insurmountable difficulties.
If we give in to discouragement we find ourselves staring downwards,
instead of where we should be training our focus:
"Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in."
Psalm 24:7
Our eyes are the windows, the gateway to our souls.

"...when I am lifted up[ from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”
John 12:32
Jesus Himself is the Lifter our Heads, the Encourager-the One through whom we can have courage, joy, peace beyond comprehension, especially in the midst of trials.
Hebrews 12 tells us this:

"...let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

Beloved, look up, be encouraged!
He is strong when you are weak, keep your heart-gaze locked on Him.
You will never lose heart,
together with Him you'll finish the race without being overcome by weariness.

Unopened?

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

John 3:16

Imagine gift-wrapped packages heaped up,
each package unmarked for any particular person. 

They could be suitable for whoever takes it.
One by one the parcels are selected, chosen because they are the largest,
or the heaviest, perhaps having the prettiest wrapping and bows.
Finally, all that is left is a solitary box in the corner.
It is poorly wrapped, as if a child had done it,
it is neither large or has any serious heft to it,
and no one is at all enthusiastic about receiving and unwrapping it.

He was despised and rejected by men;
    a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces

    he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Isaiah 53:3

Yet inside awaits the most amazing gift one could ever hope to have bestowed on them, a priceless gift that the Giver went through incredible lengths to offer.

You get this analogy...Jesus-whose real name is Yeshua, (meaning "salvation"), was and is the greatest gift ever to be offered to the sons of mankind. 

I say "offered" because the gift of salvation that cost the King of the Universe the life of His only begotten Son has to be received and unwrapped by each of us. Otherwise it remains unopened, awaiting as those who it was intended for-everyone of us- spends their lives unwrapping a heap of worthless stuff, left with rubbish and fancy, empty boxes scattered about.

Beloved, if you have not received, have not opened the Gift of salvation and eternal life yet, now is the time.
And if you have already have the Gift, make sure that you tell everyone in your sphere of influence,  the "pre-believers" in your family, your friends, colleagues, those you encounter anywhere and everywhere...

It's time to open the Gift.

Impact of Faith

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head.
1Samuel 17:45,46

David was a ruddy-complected young man who was considered by his brother’s and contemporaries as nothing more than a shepherd. When he came with provisions from his father for the fighting men, the Scriptures record his own brother’s irritation at him. Even Samuel had trouble seeing past his fleshly vision of who the future successor as King would be; he saw all of David’s brothers before he met with David.
But that day on the battle front his faith, the confidence he had-faith in God’s power, not in his own strength propelled him to victory over a frighteningly gigantic adversary.
However, later in David’s life as King, his faith began to change, to turn. He sins against the LORD, ordering a census to assay HIS OWN strength, the strength of his armies, horses , and chariots, instead of relying on the power of God.
How could this happen, after all that David had experienced first hand? How could David have degenerated so far as think his armies were more able to protect, save, and deliver than “Eloheynu Melech ha Olam”-Our God the King of the Universe?
David’s not the only one.
Consider Israel today, America, or many other powerful nations. Huge armies and sophisticated weaponry are trusted foolishly over the Creator God without whom they would cease to exist.
Let’s get really personal here: Are we any different from David?
Where is your real faith today?
Does it rest where it should, with a Holy God who loves us and cares for us, sacrificing his only begotten Son for us all, or does your faith rest precariously on a bank account, wealth portfolio, a career/profession, a government,  or anything other than God?
We must constantly examine and carefully examine of hearts because faith in anything else besides God has another name-idolatry-and the LORD will not take second fiddle to anything else.
Today beloved, realign your faith and confidence to the only real One who is worthy and trustworthy.
The Lord, He alone is God!