Seek First The Kingdom of God and His Righteousness

  Don’t miss out on the joy in the Journey   God wants us to walk in joy every step of the way.  Sadly, for many of us, we allow our joy to be stolen from us through improper vision/focus.  For some it is seeing what is out there and because we don’t have all of it right now, we are miserable.  We miss out on the joy and victories of what is happening right now because we don’t have, fully, what has been promised.  Like the child who can’t wait to grow up who misses out on the joy of childhood because the want to have and do what adults have and do. Then there are those who never progress into what has been promised because they don’t want to leave the familiar.  They don’t go for the joy that was set before them. They have gotten so used to being a child that they never want to grow into the joy of adulthood.   We need to have a clear vision/focus and to walk in the joy of the right now as we are progressing into possessing what God has given to us already that we have yet to possess.

  Already Done Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, I would like to point out 2 words from this verse.  Has Blessed.  Past tense. Already done.  You don’t have to wait for God to bless you because He already has. The blessing is waiting for you to come get.  Look at this  Deuteronomy 2:24 “ ‘Rise, take your journey, and cross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to possess it, and engage him in battle. I have given. Before the battle the Lord told Israel that He had already given them Sihon and his land. It was their’s before the first battle.   This doesn’t mean that we’re to do nothing because there is action required on our part.  We need to go possess and engage.  Victory is your’s go possess and engage. Revival never stopped since it started when Christ came go possess and engage it. Healing,

  Oh Be careful little mouth what you say. Why is it that we say that someone will never get it, or will never learn or will never change and then still be mad when the person doesn’t get it, doesn’t learn or doesn’t change? After we have said of ourselves over and over that we are dumb, stupid or ignorant should we be surprised that we continue to do dumb, stupid or ignorant stuff? Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. Words have power. Your words have power, especially over yourself. So be careful how you use

  I have never saw seed left on the shelf produce a crop. I have never seen a crop harvest itself and bring itself into the store house. So why do Christians think that they are going to have a harvest when they don’t plant seed? Why do Christians keep hanging around the church waiting for the lost souls to just come in? Biblically speaking we are to be sowing the seed of the Gospel out into the world and we are to be GOING OUT into the world to be witnesses for Jesus and to make disciples. It would be more effective, and Biblical, if we stopped inviting people to church and instead invited them to Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus. You do that and the lost get found and they will have a desire to be where the rest of the body of Christ is. Took me years to understand what I had been taught in church for most of my life about church growth was wrong. Jesus grows the church through us leading people to salvation. Not through the worship band, cute preaching,or give aways. Just t

  Remember this: YOU CAN ONLY LIVE IN THE RIGHT NOW! You only exist in the right now and both your past and future will be determined by what you do in the right now. For today was yesterday’s future and tomorrow’s past. To change the story of your past AND future depends upon your right now.

  Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;

  Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.

  I have heard people use Exodus 20:5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, To back their belief in generational curses. What puzzles me the most is how verse 6 is missed or ignored. Exodus 20:6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. Why is it that for people to believe the cursing part but not the blessing part? I am not saying that verse 6 cancels verse 5 but that people will focus and build a doctrine around verse 5 but virtually ignore verse 6. Also, through Jesus we have been delivered from the curse of the law. So yes verse 5 is serious but through Christ we can be changed and delivered and also be positioned to live in the promise of verse 6. Let us fully know and live our true identity in Christ. We have been adopted by God the Father into the family. We are in the will

T emporary vs Eternal 2 Corinthians 4:18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. I have to confess that I have spent too much of my time looking at the temporary and not near enough time on the eternal. Sadly it is a easy thing to trick ourselves into thinking that we are focused upon eternal things when actually we’re not. I have been teaching on the gifts of the Spirit from 1 Cor. 12 since the start of June. They are each wonderful things and yet so often they are only temporary things. Let me explain. Take the gifts of healings for an example. If someone is healed through this gift and they are not saved and the person who the gift was used through doesn’t use the opportunity afforded them via the healing to share the gospel what was the eternal impact? If someone is healed and still goes to hell the healing was a temporary thing. Acts 1:8 tell

  Unity and Division Biblically speaking, unity isn’t always good and division isn’t always bad. God’s command: Genesis 9:1 So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. Man’s response to this is one of the greatest examples of human unity: Genesis 11:1-4 Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there. Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” God’s response: Genesis 11:5-9 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And the LORD said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have

  Humbling ourselves In reading the Bible it important to pay attention to punctuation more than the verse markers. Sometimes a sentence is enclosed in two or more verses and we can lose part or the meaning if we don’t notice. 1 Peter 5:6-7 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Verses 6-7 here are actually 1 sentence and if we read it as such we get a fuller meaning than if we break it apart. By following the punctuation throughout we see that We are to humble ourselves by casting all our cares upon Him and as we do this He exalts us in due time for He cares for us. If we were to break this sentence by verse instead of seeing it as the one sentence there is a subtle change. Nothing that drastically changes the meaning but it can cause the reader to miss that humbling one’s-self involves the casting of ALL one’s cares upon the Lord. That means the “little” ones too. Sadly I have

  Keeping the main thing the main thing. In my few years on this earth I have found that the church and myself, especially Pentecostal/Charismatic ones and myself, tend to get to focused on secondary things. This leads us to forget the great commission and what the power of the Holy Spirit is really for. Ask yourself this, if you lay hands on a thousand people and they are all healed, you feed and clothe another thousand, you are able to drawl a crowd of a thousand people any time you want to speak, and you perform a thousand miracles BUT not one of those thousands ever became born again what’s the point? One last question, if all you did was proclaim the gospel but never drew a crowd, never saw anyone healed, and never performed a miracle BUT one person was born again and became a disciple of Jesus would it have been worth it? The Spirit’s power is for us to make disciples. Every supernatural move of God in our lives is to enable us to be His witnesses to the world. Romans 10:14 How t

  Where are our eyes? Having taught my children and now helping to teach my grandchildren how to ride bikes the number one obstacle that I noticed is where their eyes are. I tell them to pick a point way out ahead of them and to focus on that as they peddle. This will help them with balance and keep them from turning to sharply and falling. I find myself telling them repeatedly to stop looking down and to look out ahead because when they look down that’s when they are falling. Today this reminded me of Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus. When we look down at what is going on around us that is when we fall. It isn’t that we ignore what is going on around us or immediately in front of us. Just as when riding a bike when we look out way ahead of us we still see what is also right in fr

  The part they didn’t tell you. If you have attended church for any length of time you probably heard the first part of Romans 8:17a. and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, Sadly for most you didn’t hear the whole verse which shows that the first part is conditional based upon the second part. Romans 8:17b if indeed we SUFFER with Him, that we may also be glorified together. I put the word suffer in capitals so it wouldn’t be missed because that’s the primary reason you didn’t hear it. We don’t like to hear about suffering or about how the Christian life involves suffering. No we want to hear the 5 steps to prosperity, the 3 keys to freedom and how great life is after we give our life to Christ. Guess what that’s true as well. The Lord wants you to prosper, to live in freedom from sin and it is a truly great life in Christ but also involves suffering. Now don’t get it twisted. The suffering is with Christ so this isn’t talking about any suffering that co

  Joy Nehemiah 8:10 Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Notice here that it is the joy of the LORD not the joy of what is happening. If you don’t have joy right now there is nothing nor no one else that can give it to you except the Lord. Too often we chase after things or people believing that if we just had them we would have joy. Theses things may give you happiness but happiness is short lived and is based upon what is happening. Joy on the other hand is not based upon what is happening but upon the Lord. So joy is always present in the Lord. There’s so much more to know about joy than what I have time to write here. Let me encourage you to go to the Bible and read more about it. It will change your life for the better if you do.

  What if the church really read and understood these two verses? What if the those called to be these gifts lived these two verses? I wonder when this changed in the church from equipping the saints to entertaining the saints? Why did it take me so long to really understand this and understand that our traditions of church has replaced what the church is to be. The body of Christ in action not just lip service. Ephesians 4:11-12 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ Equipping is more than just giving information, it is putting those equipped into action.

  1 Cor 3:6-8 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. There’s a whole lot of work done to prepare the field for planting and then there’s more work that happens after planting before you see the first sprouts and then there’s more work to bring the plants to harvest time. Sometimes our focus is so much on the end result/harvest time because honestly no harvest and all the rest of the effort was for nothing. YET without all the effort before hand there is no harvest so the whole process is important. If it is important then each part of the process needs to not only be taken seriously it needs to be celebrated. So keep the end result in mind but be focused on the tasks at hand and celebrate each task as you progress

  Reconciliation Borrowed from my friend Isaac Ball . 2 Cor 5:15-21 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:fn The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sinfn for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. This is one of my favorite passages, (es

  How much do you know? How much do you understand? Do you know what is going to happen a minute from now, exactly, let alone a month or a year from now? Why would you ever put your faith/trust into yourself or another person more than you would God? We are limited He is not. None of us no for sure what the future holds but He already does. You see we are linear and bound by time. God is not. For Him our future has already happened, evey choice and every possibility He knows. He is I Am, not I was nor I will be. So why would you willingly choose to rely upon limited human knowledge and understanding instead of the Eternal unlimited creator God? Provebs 3:5-7 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. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones. Isaiah 55:8-9 For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor a

  Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. IM'ITATOR, noun One that follows in manners or deportment. 1. One that copies, or attempts to make the resemblance of any thing.

  James 1:19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; We could save ourselves sooo much trouble and stress if we followed this instead of being swift to speak and wrath and slow to hear.

  A friend of mine brought up the subject of availability in our lives. By asking the following How do we make ourselves available? With… -God -Family -Friends Relationship with Jesus? Praying for others? He then went on to say that balance could run parallel with this. Making ourselves available, but also balancing the different pieces. Finding that balance of availability is having to say no to something and have an even out the sea saw. This got me to thinking and this is what the Lord showed: Availability comes from priority. Our priorities are actually what we wind up balancing out and being available for. What ever is the higher priority is what we will make ourselves available for and what is less of a priority we will be less available for. We need to make sure that we first set our priorities properly, then our availability will follow which is the only way the sea saw can be balanced. Wrong order of priorities equals uneven sea saw which causes conflict and stress. I have hea

  Reaching ahead Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. We decide to either look back or look ahead. I learned that when plowing especially, the first furrow, to make a straight furrow you have to stay focused straight ahead. If you look back or off to the side your furrow will be crooked. In an engineering class I learned that to draw straight lines with out a straight edge you have to focus on the end point. When things get off kilter examine where your eyes:focus has been. Looking back really doesn’t help us because it is static and dead. Life and power are ahead of us. Change is only found in front of us.

  Helping others Matthew 18:15 “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. Most issues with people could be dealt with and resolved with this first step. Sadly most of us don’t do this. We either talk about the issue with everyone else, gossip, or we just hold it up inside, hold offense/ bitterness. These are harmful things to us but even more to the other person. When we do what this verse says to do, with the right attitude, we are showing them love. Love in that we want to have a good relationship with them but also love in that we are confronting them with something in their life that isn’t good for them. This may shock some of you but I am not perfect and I mess up sometimes. I know, I know you may not believe it but it is true. Today I had a friend reach out to me about something that I could of handled better. It was something that I didn’t realize I had messed up until it was poi

  Obedience 1 Samuel 15:22 So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. Due, in large part, to the abuse of different authority figures in the Church over the years we don’t hear a lot about obedience. Also we our flesh doesn’t like to hear about obedience. Yet obeying God is of the upmost importance. In this verse we see that obeying God’s voice is more important than any sacrifices we make or any worship we offer up. (Offering sacrifices in the context of the Old Testament was worship). Why obey? Here’s a question that isn’t asked enough. Why should we obey God? out of fear of the consequences? Because it is right thing to do? Because God blesses our obedience? Answer yes, yes and yes. Yet there’s an even greater reason and the one that should trump all other reasons, because we love and trust Him. The more love and trust we have for th

  Spirit FRUIT Pay close attention. love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control are the FRUIT of THE SPIRIT, NOT the fruit of _________(insert your name). When we treat this fruit as simply human character traits we lead our selves into to failure and self condemnation. They ARE NOT fruits separate from each other but collectively the Fruit that is produced by the Spirit. The only way for the full fruit to be in our lives without a slice(s) missing is to stop trying to artificially produce it through our will power and instead be filled with the Spirit. When we are filled with the Spirit the Fruit naturally is produced in our lives because the Spirit is always producing the Fruit. If we see that any part of the fruit is not evident in our life instead of condemning ourselves for our lack of willpower we should be looking for an blockage in our spirit that is stopping the Spirit from filling us. Hence why Galatians 5:16 says I say then: Wa

  The Oak and the Acorn So many times we see that God has something big for us but miss how He wants to bring it into our lives. We are expecting the Oak tree but God gives us the acorn. So we chuck out or ignore the acorn because it doesn’t fit what we expected. This leads to our missing out on what God intended for us. Be faithful with the small and the big will come. Luke 16:10 He who  is  faithful in  what is  least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in  what is  least is unjust also in much.

  Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; Many people suffer today from anxiety and it would be insulting to them to just quote them the first part of the verse. We have to go through the whole verse and really the next 2 verses as well. Philippians 4:7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The Lord doesn’t just tell us something not to do without giving us something to do. It is In doing what we should do that helps us, really, to stop doing the negative thing. You will also find that what the Lord wants us to stop and star

  Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Such a simple instruction from the savior but so often ignored. I have found that so much stress, anxiety and depression comes from our seeking the all these things. Honestly we just need to follow the instruction. For if we seek first, first means first before anything or anyone else, the Kingdom of God and His righteousness we really don’t have to seek after anything else second. The Lord doesn’t continue on any where else with seek this second or seek this third. The Bible does speak in other places of seeking. Yet every other thing that we are to seek is found in the Kingdom and righteousness of God. Wisdom, the face of God, the presence of God etc will be found if we seek first what Jesus said seek. He really makes things simple. No 12 steps, 7 ways nor 5 keys nor 3 points, nope just a first. We do the first and the all is added. There’s peace in that. You don’t have

  Recently I have had conversations with two different people about perspective and perception that people have about different things. As I have pondered on these I see that we all have our own perspectives and perceptions. They come from out of our experiences, learning and knowledge. Therefore they are all limited because we are limited. Why Proverbs 3:5-8 is so important. 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. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones And also Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. Our perspectives and perceptions are limited because we as humans are limited. Why it is so important to not rely on the