Overwhelmed? Turn To The Wall..

 Overwhelmed? Turn To The Wall..

When you feel so overwhelmed by challenges on everyside, or just too humongous for you to bear, find a place of solace, turn your face away from all the distractions, and your back away from all the noise. Turn to the wall, and seek God's face in prayer. His word to us is that, if and when we seek HIM with all of our hearts, we will find HIM. HE will always come to our rescue. Jeremiah 29

Prayer is our most powerful weapon! 

FACT: PRAYER is the most powerful weapon on earth!

11 Kings 18 - 20 This is the story of King Hezekiah. 

Hezekiah was a jewish king of Judah several years ago.  He became king at age 25. His father worshipped idols and false gods. But when he became king he did the very opposite of his father. He worshipped the Almighty God, and did right in the sight of God. By destroying altars, and all places of worship to other gods, simultaneous to re-opening the temple of God for local worshippers; Hezekiah was committed to his faith in God. He destroyed the bronze snake rod that belonged to Moses because the people had started to idolize it. He re-introduced God to his nation. 

_______________________________________

At that time, there was a very powerful Assyrian king called Sennacherib who was determined to conquer all of the region. This included Judah. At first, Hezekiah tried to sway him by offering all the silver and even the gold which came from the architecture of the temple.  He was extremely arrogant. He boasted that having conquered all of Israel, that Judah was defensless towards him. In fact,  he stated that it was also futile for them to seek the assistance of any allies such as Egypt. He offered Hezekiah 2000 horses if he conceded. His army consisted of 185,000 soldiers.  

_______________________________________

All the nations were afraid of him. So far, he had conquered everyone else.  But Hezekiah had a strategy. His defense was to go into his chambers and pray to his God. That's all that he did.  He went into God's temple and asked God for intervention. He encouraged Isaiah and others to pray with him to God. He sought help from his God, and God answered favourably. God sent one angel who killed all the 185,000 soldiers in one go.  When the Asyrian king returned to his home, God allowed his very own two sons to kill him with his sword.  God has not changed. HE'S still in control of everything and everyone in the earth.

Problems are a part of life.  They come in different sizes, shapes and forms. Some are like tsunamis, they knock us off of our bearings completely.  They are so gigantic and overwhelming. Especially now that we're in the latter days.  We have to decide in advance what will be our strategy when confronted. The bible says God has shortened the days because they are more evil than before.  HE did it to help believers cope and encourage their faith.  

Matthew 24: 22 “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.

_______________________________________

On another ocassion, God sent Isaiah to Hezekiah with a message. He told him to get his affairs in order because he was going to die.  AGAIN, Hezekiah went before God.  Hezekiah used the same strategy as before.  His defense was to go into his chambers and pray to his God. That's all that he did. He shut his door and turned his face to the wall and prayed for God to change his mind. Before Isaiah could get far, God instructed him to turn back and tell Hezekiah that HE had heard his prayers.  HE was going to extend Hezekiah's life by fifteen more years instead. Practice turning to and talking with God especially when you're in problems. Start the conversation and wait on God. James 5 The effective fervent prayer of the righteous availeth much, ask Daniel.

_______________________________________

When we walk in obedience to God and HIS precepts, what won't HE do for us?  When we trust HIM with all of our hearts and soul and mind, what can keep HIM from coming to our rescue? HE loves us so much.  HE leaves the 99 and comes after us the one lost sheep. HE'S the father of the prodigal son, watching and waiting for us to come back home to HIM.  (HE does not condemn us.) We are the lost coin HE stops at nothing to find. HIS love is relentless towards us.  All we have to do is call upon HIM because HE is our for sure deliverer.  When everyone else is afraid or has deserted you for whatever reason, look to God your faithful father. 

Psalm 91:14-16

14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

WORSHIP: Great Is Thy Faithfulness

TESTIMONY:

HE will protect you always!

IN THE DARK....focus on GOD!

IN THE DARK....focus on GOD!

Sigh! So much to get done. If I can just break through the ceiling, the wall. But not yet, HE’S not ready! Sometimes I get weary trying to get out to no avail. It’s not that I feel unsafe. It’s just that I want more. I’m in a cell, but I’m not miserable or feeling tight. I just need to sit tight. I’m anxious sometimes to go out into the light. But HE’S not ready. I’m not ready. I’m still in embryonic form. It’s not time yet for me to be birth. I’ve got to trust the process. A premature birth is dangerous to the fetus. God is not ready to release me from the darkness of the womb of HIS nurture. Like a seed I first have to be planted way down in the dark soil, and build more roots before I surface. I need to germinate. Patience is a virtue. Rest is good!

What do I do when I’m not getting enough done fast enough? When my goals and aspirations are not being materialized and instead other agendas keep surfacing on my shores? What do I do when the people who are constantly relying on me are unreliable. Even though I know that God is my source, do I continue to let Judas kiss me? Do I continue to be faithful to the unfaithful? To what avail? Do I just sit and wait patiently and do nothing? Not going anywhere anytime soon!

….I guess this is how Daniel felt in the lion’s den; knowing it was God that was keeping the lions from devouring him; yet wondering when he was going to get out of there. Or Jonah in the belly of the whale. When you know that it’s God who’s keeping you but you’re curious to get transferred to a more favorable environ. You want to get to a more comfortable place, anywhere but there. What about Joseph in prison? Clearly it was God who took him to Egypt. He had gotten a vision soooooooooooooo long ago about his dominion over his brothers. First he was beaten, then sold, then imprisoned, then released, then lied upon, then imprisoned again.  Yet he remained faithful to God through it all. If God brought you to it, HE'LL get you through it.

"God is not a God of buck-up!"....Pastor David Henry

Proverbs 3: 5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge HIM, And HE shall direct your paths.

 

The purpose of your life....

 

Your whole life is about fulfilling God's purpose, not yours.  Ephesians 2  God made us to do good works which please HIM.  This includes: dominating the earth, loving each other, loving and relating to HIM, obeying HIS commands, enjoying the earth, enjoying our lives on earth.  The thing is, we cannot accomplish any of these goals without correct instructions.  God is very organized.  And HIS intent is for the earth to function as organized as heaven does.  That is why Jesus taught HIS disciples to pray by giving them a template which included "THY Kingdom come, THY Will be done, here on earth as it is in heaven".  Jesus was the first example of an 'extra-terristial being' i.e. a person

who lived in heaven coming to earth to teach us the ways of heaven.  Even though God had sent the Holy Spirit and angels to relate to men in the past, they were all short-term appearances.  The only two people who had ever really related to/ dwelt with God were Adam and Eve.  They were distracted and deceived by the devil.  They forfeited the plan.  Genesis 1-3 It was not enough time and training for them to get it right.

 

Why Jesus came....

 

Jesus came to the earth  to restore man's broken relationship with God, and to fulfill God's purpose for our lives.  God is holy.  In order for us to be acceptable in the presence of God we would have to become holy as well.  The only thing that could make us holy is the pure blood of Jesus Christ HIS Son.   

 

Hebrews 9:22

 

And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.  

 

Ever since Adam and Eve sinned, God promised to send Jesus to clean up their mess. Genesis 3 Then God gave us laws to keep us on the right track and prophets/ prophecies to remind us that Jesus would come and make it better. When the time was right Jesus came and died on the cross, so that HE could give us the Holy Spirit to teach us how to successfully accomplish God's plan for our lives on earth.  The Holy Spirit could not live in 'unclean vessels'.  Jesus was man on earth, HIS mission limited HIM to one location at a time.  But the Holy Spirit is not limited to location.  HE can be with and in all of us simultaneously.

 

^{Matthew 5: 17-19}

 

¹⁷ “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. ¹⁹ Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  

 

God's plan for man's life on earth is to enjoy the privileges of living in the Kingdom of heaven.  It's like being a King who has colonized another territory.  You send your 'governor' or representative to set up a 'colony' of your kingdom.  In a colony, the citizens speak the same language, share a similar culture, and are entitled to the same privileges as the residents in the original kingdom.  The original kingdom is the headquarters with the resources.  The laws and constitution/ principles are the same in both territories.  Jesus brought the government of the Kingdom of heaven to earth when HE came.  Isaiah 9 After HIS resurrection Jesus told HIS disciples to wait on the Holy Spirit who would teach them all things i.e. the culture of the Kingdom of heaven).

 

St. John 14:26

 

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you.

 

Jesus told HIS disciples that the reason HE came to earth was to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of heaven and HE commissioned them to do the same.  Matthew 4-28 Everything about us should reflect this mandate.  When we understand the Kingdom, we understand our authority.  Jesus had dark days like those in the wilderness; like the one in Gethsemane, but HE was not distracted.  HIS mission was to expose us to the Kingdom of heaven, restore it to us, and give us the Holy Spirit to sustain it here on earth.  Gethsemane was HIS last chance to 'cop out', i.e. to disobey God's will for HIS life on earth.  Once HE got arrested, the rest was history.  Joseph could have slept with Potipher's wife.   Distraction and deception are very subtle.  It is important to know what is God's command to you, and to obey it no matter what.  Just as we all have a unique fingerprint, so too we all have a specific purpose in God's plan for our lives on earth. Everything in the earth is just a 'thing'. Things are replaceable and incomparable to those in the Kingdom of heaven.  It's seasonal and liable to roth.  Matthew 6 God's will is for us to set our affections on the things of heaven in HIS Kingdom.  It's a different mindset for a different lifestyle.

 

Colossians 3: 2-3

2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 

 

In the Kingdom of heaven your value system is the opposite of the kingdom of earth.  The kingdom of earth is temporal and so is its wealth.  It is ruled by the devil.  he is God's enemy.  At the end of the day, the mission is God's glory.  God must be glorified.  It's what Kings demand.  Kings take care of their children and citizens.  It's in their nature and reflects their glory.  Their territories/ colonies reflect their wealth, power and dominion. Jesus reclaimed earthly dominion and gave it back to man when HE died on the cross.  Then HE went back to be with HIS Father in heaven.  HE is now seated on HIS throne at the right hand of God The Father. Mark 16 It doesn't matter where you start.  With God you always finish on top. The Almighty God is in always control.  HE sees all, HE knows all!  Trust HIS plan.  Give HIM all the praise!  HE is Sovereign over all!

 

TESTIMONY: ISIS Assassin Meets Jesus | Testimony by Sean Feucht

WORSHIP: Oceans

Be a flint....focus on GOD!