Believe Him ...

Good Morning Friends!

I pray that your weekend is off to a peaceful, restful and enjoyable start. It is cloudy here in Virginia Beach with a forecast of rain this afternoon. However, the possibility of rain does not disappoint me. No – I believe what Scripture says, that ‘the spiritual is not first; the natural/physical comes first, and then the spiritual’ (I Cor. 15:46). And so I believe that there will be shower/outpouring of His wisdom into my spirit and a rain/flood of His Spirit into every situation which concerns me.

BELIEF is a powerful thing!

What we BELIEVE has a powerful impact, both positively and negatively

Maya Angelou is quoted as saying, ‘When someone shows you who they are, believe them.’ It is a powerful quote and one that has stayed with me from the first time that I heard it. To me, it speaks to a need to operate within the boundaries of reality.

Too often though, we ignore the obvious truth in exchange for a lie. I am not certain why this happens. Perhaps we have been conditioned, as part of the fallen nature of man to gravitate towards what is false. Perhaps we have just gotten too busy with life, technology and religious practice to be observant. Perhaps our lenses through which we view the world have been permanently tainted by our individual life experiences. Whatever the cause, it seems to happen quite frequently that we convince ourselves that what we see and have been told is not the truth – both positively and negatively.

There is a story of a woman in an unhealthy relationship. She is belittled, demeaned and abused – verbally, physically and emotionally. She is terrified and miserable. Yet, one day she escapes that prison. And after much time, another man enters her life, a gentle man. He respects and honors her; he protects her and encourages her. He does everything she ever dreamed that a God-sent man would do. But she does not believe what he says or what he does. Why? She still looks at life, and him, through the lens of hurt and disappointment. Rather than enjoying the reality of what is before her and the joy-filled vision of what could be, she embraces fear and uncertainty; she rejects him and chooses aloneness – while she keeps waiting for the future that she has dreamed of, the future that was standing right before her eyes and which just walked away from her presence because she said, ‘No thanks.’

Sounds a bit unbelievable – does it not?

Yet it is a reality for many women (and men) out there.

Sadly, it is also a reality for many Christians.

You see – we can be just like that woman I described.

Some of us have been so damaged by the past, by relationships, by hurtful words, by damaging actions and by ungodly voices; we have been so injured that we have a hard time seeing anything other than what we have previously experienced.

Although we have a Gentleman standing in our presence – telling us that He chose us (I Peter 2:9), that we are lovely (I Peter 2:1-5), that He will protect and defend to the death and that He has already (John 3:16) – we question that truth which is right before our eyes. At times, we elect to ignore it altogether.

As we read Luke 1:28-29, we gain some insight from reading the story of a young lady receiving a vision and revelation from the Lord. Mary, a young virgin, engaged to be married, was visited by a celestial being on assignment from the very throne room of heaven. The account reads, ‘And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.’

It seems like a wonderful greeting to receive from an angel.

How many of us would love to hear an angel tell us that we are highly favored and that the Lord is with us? Yet she was troubled at his saying. And, he had not even revealed to her the total sum of God’s plan for her to carry the Messiah. He merely told her that she was highly favored, blessed and in the company of the Lord.

I am not sure what Mary’s life had been like up to that point.

I am not certain what your life has been like up to this point. I am, however, well-acquainted with what my life has been like up to this point. And if I am honest, there have been times when my response was just like Mary’s when God showed me what He had in store for me.

Yet, He responds to me just like the angel responded to Mary:

‘Do not be afraid … for you have found favor with God.’ (Lk. 1:30)

The same message is delivered to you today:

Do not be afraid, for you have found favor with God!

Since God has shown you who He is, BELIEVE HIM

When God shows you who you are and what He has for you, BELIEVE HIM!

You see – if we are not careful, we can get caught in a cycle where, we look at the bad and try to convince ourselves that it is good. We look at the good and are convinced that it must be false. Or that if it is true, it could not possibly apply to our lives.

Often times – we are taken aback when we hear what God thinks of us because our self-view is not aligned with His God-view. It can be intimidating once we realize who God says we are because, once we know, we must rise to the call or walk in disobedience. A new revelation of who God says He is and who He says you are will always require action on your part.

You will have to push past fear, intellect and experience and BELIEVE.

You cannot let fear prevent you from journeying with God – whether it is fear of an unknown future or fear induced by a living knowledge of past disappointments. You must be intentional about drawing near to God, finding out who He is, finding out who He says you are and what His plans are – despite your fears or insecurities and without consideration of what it will cost you. No price is too great to walk with God.

God has proven His character. He has told you and shown you who He is. He has done the same thing for me. He is a good God (Num. 23:19), who has good plans for each of us (Jer. 29:11), who looks for opportunities to show Himself strong on our behalf (II Ch. 16:9), who is working all things together for our good (Rom. 8:28), who will do exceedingly and abundantly above all we could ask or think – if we will only let the power of His Holy Spirit work in us and through us (Eph. 3:20).

We can trust what He has revealed. And, when we do, we will experience God and all that He has for us. Further, we will hear others testify of our faith, just like Mary did when she went to visit her cousin Elizabeth: ‘Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.’ Luke 1:45

Blessed are those who BELIEVE,

For there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told them from the Lord. Hallelujah!

I am praying for you …

Praying that you will experience God’s presence, like never before; praying that you will know Him; praying that you will believe Him; praying that you will experience all He has for you. I pray that you will have a blessed weekend! Sending much love your way ...

 

God Almighty who plants into our hearts His heavenly hopes and visions,

will not fail us when we press forward to possess them.