Online Journals

Rhema:

Romans 12: 3 Because of the privilege and authority[c] God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.[d]

Inspect:

I remember in the days before Global Positioning Satellites (GPS), aircraft relied on Inertial Navigation Systems (INS). These INS devices functioned by having a defined starting position and then precisely tracking the time and turns, the climbs and descent of the aircraft. If you had a good starting location and did a good job of tracking all the changes in direction you took, you could establish where you were currently located. So the starting place was important, if you were off, then all your calculations were also going to be off. This required the aircraft to park at an exact marked location at the airport gate. The aircraft was required to calibrate the INS before it left so that its position could be calculated as precisely as possible. I was told by friends working at the airport, that there were times when an over-anxious pilot, in a hurry to get on their way would push back from the gate prior to the INS system initializing properly. This would require the plane to be pushed back and the calibration sequence started all over again. All to be sure that an accurate starting point could be calculated.

I believe this is the principle behind this scripture. We need to be sure where we are, before we start moving. If we do so, then we know what our position of faith is. We would know our level of faith in prayer, in devotionals, in giving, in witnessing and other spiritual habits. We can then grow in the right direction to make ourselves as healthy and as strong as possible in our faith.

Inertial Navigation Systems have now been mostly replaced by Global Positioning Systems or GPS. With these systems the position is not determined by an internally tracked set of changes, but by position calculated from reference satellites moving overhead. As long as the aircraft can receive the signals from these satellites, its position can be determined very accurately. I believe this is the same with this scripture. Our spiritual position is determined by the receiving from the Holy Spirit and not our own perceptions. If we humble ourselves and listen carefully to the Holy Spirit, our position will be very clear. We will then know where we can improve ourselves to better serve the Lord, others and ourselves.

Commit:

I must stop looking at myself to determine my spiritual health. I must instead listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit and hear where my faith is. I can then increase my faith in the right area so that I can be of best service to my Lord, to others and myself.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me how to know where I stand with you. Please send me your Holy Spirit to be my constant GPS. Help me be sensitive to the Holy Spirit who will tell me where I am, and what direction I need to grow in to be more like you.

In the name of the one who will show me where my feet stand, and show me the direction that I must go in, Jesus!

Amen.

Proverbs 15: 31 If you listen to constructive criticism,
you will be at home among the wise.
32 If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself;
but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding.
33 Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom;
humility precedes honor.

Inspect:

The theme here is humility. In this portion of scripture we are reminded that if we humble ourselves we will be blessed.

- If we listen to constructive criticism. This definitely takes humility. We need to bite our tongue and open our minds that what we did is subject to improvement. I believe the promise of this scripture about being at home among the wise, is that those that are wise got their because they too are open to constructive criticism.

- We need to accept discipline, because the failure to do so will result in harm. The lack of discipline causes us to not only stop progressing, but to gradually grow weaker. Correction will help us to not just maintain, but to grow stronger in understanding.

- If we reverence the Lord and fear His judgment, we learn wisdom. As we humble ourselves, we learn things that will lead us to honor.

Humility allows us to understand where we are and what we need to do to proceed. The lack of humility causes us to fool ourselves, thinking we’re somewhere we’re not. Lack of humility causes us to go down a path that we think leads to reward, but leads to destruction.

Commit:

I need to be careful to be humble always. I must listen to criticism. I must subject myself to discipline. I must fear the Lord.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me the importance of humility. Please help me by sending me your Holy Spirit to remind me when my pride is starting to take over. Remind me when I’m starting to reject discipline. Remind me when I lose my fear of you. Help me to not seek honor, but humility.

In the name of the one who humbled Himself, and will help me to humble myself, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Proverbs 12: 24 Work hard and become a leader;
be lazy and become a slave.

Inspect:

Want to become a leader? Here’s God’s method. Work hard. Don’t want to work hard? Too hard? Then become a slave.

Is this all there is to becoming a leader? I believe that if there is more, God’s Word would have said it. So for me, I’m going to take this literally. I want to be a leader, someone who can be used by God to lead others to become leaders themselves. So if I become a leader by working hard, I should encourage others to work hard as well. That’s it.

Commit:

I must not make this more complicated. I want to become a leader, so I must work hard. I want to help others to become leaders, so I must encourage them to work hard.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me your way to become a leader. Please help me to work hard. Help me to work hard when there is no apparent progress, when there is no recognition, when there is no apparent value. You have made your Son a leader because He has worked hard serving us. Help me to do the same by serving you and serving others.

In the name of the one who has become my leader through hard work, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Proverbs 8: 22 “The Lord formed me from the beginning,
before he created anything else.
23 I was appointed in ages past,
at the very first, before the earth began.
24 I was born before the oceans were created,
before the springs bubbled forth their waters.
25 Before the mountains were formed,
before the hills, I was born—
26 before he had made the earth and fields
and the first handfuls of soil.
27 I was there when he established the heavens,
when he drew the horizon on the oceans.
28 I was there when he set the clouds above,
when he established springs deep in the earth.
29 I was there when he set the limits of the seas,
so they would not spread beyond their boundaries.
And when he marked off the earth’s foundations,
30 I was the architect at his side.
I was his constant delight,
rejoicing always in his presence.
31 And how happy I was with the world he created;
how I rejoiced with the human family!
32 “And so, my children,[d] listen to me,
for all who follow my ways are joyful.
33 Listen to my instruction and be wise.
Don’t ignore it.
34 Joyful are those who listen to me,
watching for me daily at my gates,
waiting for me outside my home!
35 For whoever finds me finds life
and receives favor from the Lord.
36 But those who miss me injure themselves.
All who hate me love death.”

Inspect:

The voice here is Wisdom. This is so cool. God created Wisdom from the very beginning. In fact Wisdom was created before anything else was created. Before the earth, heavens, before everything. Wisdom helped God to establish the boundaries and the order of creation. It is also important to note that God takes delight in Wisdom and Wisdom rejoices in God.

This help me understand why Wisdom is so important. If God first created Wisdom before anything else, then why shouldn’t we. If God used Wisdom to establish the working relationships and boundaries of things, then why shouldn’t we. If God took pleasure in having Wisdom around, then why shouldn’t we? We see the amazing workings of the universe with its harmonious function, sustainability and even beauty, all evidence that Wisdom the architect is a good designer. So why wouldn’t we want Wisdom around when we’re doing our activities, when we’re working or playing or ministering, why don’t we take pleasure in having Wisdom around?

The Lord promises here that if we have Wisdom around, we will have success and we will have favor from the Lord. This makes so much sense, because if we love Wisdom and God loves Wisdom, then God is around. When God is around, there can be nothing but success. However, if we ignore Wisdom, or worse yet hate it, then we don’t have success, instead we have injury. When we hate Wisdom, that God loves, then we don’t have life that God loves, we’re left with death.

So we need to be sure we have Wisdom first, before we create anything. We need to be sure to enjoy using Wisdom to direct our decisions. If we do, we’ll be successful, we will have life, we will have God!

Commit:

I must intentionally invite Wisdom first in getting ready to plan activities. I must not wait till I get into trouble and then invite Wisdom. I must learn to enjoy having Wisdom around.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this important lesson about Wisdom. Please send me your Holy Spirit to remind to use Wisdom first before starting anything. Remind me to invite Wisdom for every decision. Help me to enjoy Wisdom instead of not.

In the name of the one who created Wisdom and take delight in it, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Romans 8: 35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”[n]) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

Inspect:

This is major encouragement, a great lesson on how we cannot let circumstance be a signal of God’s love for us. It is so tempting to think that when everything is going perfect, our health is good, our career is humming along and our family is functional that God loves us. However, this scripture tells us this is not the case. It could be that we find ourselves persecuted from all directions, not having enough to eat, going through a season of poverty our uncertainty, even under threat of imminent death, we may feel during these time that God in no way loves us. We want to think that God cannot be loving us, because everything is going wrong. We see here God truth describes all these negative things as temporary, that actually we already possess overwhelming victory. The wins that we will get will overcome all the difficulties we go through, even death itself.

All because Christ loves us. We will suffer these things like trouble, persecution, hunger and even death, not because God is neglecting us for lack of love, but because we are partners with Him in the battle against the enemy. Christ himself, endured all these things, and yet emerge victorious. We too, if we are His true followers will also go through these things, after all if we’re following Him and He went through this, we’re going to through it as well. But at the end, just like Jesus, we will emerge as overwhelming victors. We will no longer suffer trouble, persecution, hunger, poverty, danger or threatened by death, as Christ has overcome all, we will overcome all.

Commit:

I realize that I cannot get victory without following Christ through the battle that takes me through trouble, persecution, hunger and danger. I cannot share in the victory of my Lord, without sharing in the suffering that He went through. It will be tough, but the victory will be worth it.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this encouragement. Please help me to follow you, even if the path lead through trouble, persecution, hunger and danger. Send your Holy Spirit to help me to follow you all the way through, knowing that if I endure, if I stay right behind you, I will gain the victory that you have gained. Please help me, I cannot do it alone. Help to lead others along the same path as well. We walk the path together .

In the name of the one who has shown me how to walk through trouble, persecution, hunger and even death to claim victory over of these at the end, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Proverbs 1: 7 Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Inspect:

King Solomon, the wisest most knowledgeable man in the world wrote this proverb. He would certainly know about true knowledge. So when he says the foundation of true knowledge is the fear of the Lord, we should believe that there is something here. What I think he means by the fear of the Lord, is that we need to be reverent and even fearful of God’s judgment. We need to believe that God will punish us when we do wrong and we know He will do it because He is s a just God. Yes there is mercy, but there is judgment as well. I believe that if we fear the Lord, we will begin to really pray and seek and figure out how to obey the Lord. As we go through the process of trying to obey the Lord we will develop true knowledge and wisdom.

If we don’t fear the Lord then we will do things any way we feel is right. It takes now wisdom, knowledge or discipline to do it this way. We not only do not improve our selves, but instead incur God’s judgment. So we need to fear the Lord, we need to be afraid of judgment, we need to respect and reverence His commands realizing that His way is higher than ours and is the best for us. As a result in our struggle to obey the Lord against the resistance of obstacles, we grow stronger in our knowledge and wisdom.

Commit:

I must not despise wisdom and discipline, although it is harder, it will eventually lead me to judgment. Instead I need to be afraid of the Lord and use that to motivate me to obey, to find ways to do the things He wants me to do, the way He wants me to do it.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me the foundation of wisdom and knowledge. I pray that the Holy Spirit give me the fear of the Lord, so that I will be driven to obedience. Help me to stretch my knowledge and wisdom so that I can be obedient in everything I do.

In the name of the one who is the source of all wisdom and knowledge for me, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Kings 11: 1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, ‘You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.’ Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord.

Inspect:

King Solomon obeyed God’s instructions precisely in the construction of the Temple and as a result God blessed with His presence. God blessed Solomon with peace, wealth and enormous influence. This influence went way beyond Israel to many countries. Unfortunately, blessings bring with them the potential to distract us, to turn us away from the Lord. So we see that Solomon with all of his wisdom and knowledge did not prevent him from sinning. Could it be that his wisdom and knowledge caused him to be insistent on disobeying God? I don’t believe so. I believe that pride was the key to the stubborn, rebellious nature. I believe pride overcame knowledge and wisdom. This is especially concerning when you consider that with Solomon’s tremendous knowledge and wisdom, why couldn’t he predict where he was going? I think this is the tremendous power of pride. Pride can cut down anyone.

Commit:

I need to watch out for pride. I must not allow pride to overcome the wisdom and knowledge that God has given me. I must not insist on sin, thinking that I can get away with it.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me how insidious pride is. Please help me to guard against having pride cause me to disobey you. Send me your Holy Spirit to warn me when my pride rises up. Help me to not sin against you.

In the name of the one who will help me to guard against my pride, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Chronicles 8: 14 In assigning the priests to their duties, Solomon followed the regulations of his father, David. He also assigned the Levites to lead the people in praise and to assist the priests in their daily duties. And he assigned the gatekeepers to their gates by their divisions, following the commands of David, the man of God. 15 Solomon did not deviate in any way from David’s commands concerning the priests and Levites and the treasuries.

Inspect:

I think why this passage of scripture jumped out was that King Solomon “did not deviate in any way from David’s commands concerning priests and Levites and the treasuries.” I would have thought that King Solomon knowing that the Lord gifted him with wisdom and knowledge far above anyone who ever was and ever will be would be tempted to try and improve. However, we see that Solomon did no such thing. The scripture reports that the King did not deviate in any way from David’s commands. Earlier we know that King David said that he was given these instructions directly from the Lord. So King Solomon did not deviate, and King David did not deviate. This was obedience was an act of humble submission. The result was that the Lord blessed.

The lesson for me was that so often I’m tempted to improve and find a better different way to do things. I need to know which things that I must do without deviation, those things that the Lord wants me to do precisely. I need to humble myself and know that the no matter how much knowledge and wisdom the Lord has given me, His ways are higher than mine, I need to humble myself and just obey. And not just obey, obey exactly.

Commit:

I must humble myself. I must obey. I must remember my place. I must not be so presumptuous to think that I know better than the Lord or those that He has put in authority over me.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I really thank you for this lesson. Please send me your Holy Spirit to help me to humble myself and obey without deviation. I know that I must lose the pride and know that You are God. I can’t do it without your Holy Spirit, please baptize me afresh and keep doing it, please don’t stop.

In the name of the one who did exactly as the Heavenly Father instructed, and will help me to do as well, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Chronicles 7: 19 “But if you or your descendants abandon me and disobey the decrees and commands I have given you, and if you serve and worship other gods, 20 then I will uproot the people from this land that I have given them. I will reject this Temple that I have made holy to honor my name. I will make it an object of mockery and ridicule among the nations. 21 And though this Temple is impressive now, all who pass by will be appalled. They will ask, ‘Why did the LORD do such terrible things to this land and to this Temple?’
22 “And the answer will be, ‘Because his people abandoned the LORD, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and they worshiped other gods instead and bowed down to them. That is why he has brought all these disasters on them.’”

Inspect:

King Solomon has just dedicated the temple. The Lord promised earlier in the familiar 2 Chronicles 7:14, that if the people would humble themselves and pray, God would hear them and heal their land. However, this verse reminds us that this promise is a conditional one. If the people would humble themselves ,and turn away from their wicked ways than God would honor the worship and prayer from the temple that was built for Him.

However, if the people refused to humble themselves and instead disobeyed the Lord, than the temple would not make a difference. It is amazing that with the tons of precious metals, the beautifully cut stone, the finely crafted wood and the excellence of the furnishings, it would make no difference if the people disobeyed the Lord. In fact the temple which was a symbol of God’s abundance would become a symbol of God’s judgment.

This is an important reminder that God desires our obedience over and above what we make for Him. If we disobey the decrees and commands than there is no compensating thing we can do. We cannot pay for our disobedience. God wants our obedience over anything else.

Commit:

I need to focus on knowing what the Lord wants and obeying it. I must not try and to try and look for other ways to try and please the Lord, He wants my obedience and not sacrifice. I can build an amazing ministry, but if He doesn’t want it the way it is, then it doesn’t matter. It’s not what I think it is, Its what the Lord thinks it s.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank for your for being so clear about your expectations of obedience. Please help me to prioritize obedience over everything else. Help me not to think that I can get away with disobedience by earning your favor by working extra hard at something else. You desire my obedience because you love me and you know that that my obedience is the best thing for me. Please help me with your Holy Spirit.

In the name of the one who will help me to obey the Father as He has obeyed the Father, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Kings 8: 58 May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors.

Inspect:

This was part of the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the Temple. The King’s prayer was that the Lord put the desire in our hearts to be in God’s will, to do obey everything God asks us to do. I think why this passage is a rhema is that Solomon wisely realized that we humans constantly rebel against the desire to do God’s will and to obey Him. I think our natural desire is do our own will, to rebel against God’s commands, decrees, and regulations. Unfortunately, our natural tendency will lead us natural consequences, which is a natural death.

We need to ask God to replace our natural rebellious nature, with one that desires a relationship with God. A desire to do God’s will in every part of our lives. A desire to obey all the command, decrees and regulations, not because we have to, but because we realize that they are given but a God that loves us and wants the best for us. If we replace our natural tendency with a supernatural tendency, then we will realize a supernatural consequence which is eternal life.

Commit:

I must pray for my desire so that I will want to do God’s will. I must pray for others that they may desire to do God’s will.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this prayer. I pray if for myself and others. Please help me to crucify my natural desires to rebel and disobey, help me instead to desire to do everything in your will, to obey all of your commands, decree and regulations.

In the name of the one who will help me to crucify my natural, and will resurrect to supernatural, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Kings 6: 7 The stones used in the construction of the Temple were finished at the quarry, so there was no sound of hammer, ax, or any other iron tool at the building site.

Inspect:

This is interesting that during the construction of the temple that Solomon built, the stones that were used were prepared before they were brought to the temple. Why? I believe that God was teaching us a couple of lessons here.

The first is that God didn’t want the sound of iron striking stone at the temple. I think God wanted the temple to be a place of peace, with sounds of worship.

The second is that in 1 Peter 2:5 describes the temple being constructed of “living stones.” In this context I believe the temple is not a building but a God’s Kingdom, and the stones are not rocks, but people. If I am right in connecting these two passages, the lesson for me is that God uses all kinds of people to build up His kingdom. But I believe that God wants us to use everyone that comes to us as they are. We are not to “finish” them, just as God didn’t want the sound of iron tools, I believe we are not to try and change them. This is the job of the Holy Spirit. We are to build and not tear down.

Commit:

I must help to build God’s kingdom using whoever He sends my way. My job is not pound them, or cut them or to use any destructive tool. My job is to build them up. It’s the work of the Holy Spirit to transform them and not mine. My job is to make them a disciple, so that they will allow the Holy Spirit to do the work of making this person a part of the kingdom.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me how to build you kingdom. Help me to accept everyone you send my way knowing that the Holy Spirit has already begun to shape them before they even showed up. Help me to be sure that I don’t pound or chop them, instead give me the love and wisdom of the Holy Spirit to build them up. You died for each one of them, who am I to choose them? Help me to see them as You do.

In the name of the one who took me in and build me up, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Kings 4: 29 God gave Solomon very great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge as vast as the sands of the seashore. 30 In fact, his wisdom exceeded that of all the wise men of the East and the wise men of Egypt. 31 He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite and the sons of Mahol—Heman, Calcol, and Darda. His fame spread throughout all the surrounding nations. 32 He composed some 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs. 33 He could speak with authority about all kinds of plants, from the great cedar of Lebanon to the tiny hyssop that grows from cracks in a wall. He could also speak about animals, birds, small creatures, and fish. 34 And kings from every nation sent their ambassadors to listen to the wisdom of Solomon.

Inspect:

When God gives wisdom, He doesn’t fool around . When King Solomon asked God for wisdom, God promised to give him wisdom more than anyone ever had, and more than anyone ever will. Here we see it recorded that King Solomon was way above his contemporaries both near and far. We also see the breadth and depth of his wisdom and knowledge. The breadth spanned from practical wisdom that is recorded in proverbs, many about human nature. He had an artistic side that was revealed in songs. The Lord granted him knowledge that spanned the natural sciences from botany to zoology. The depth of his knowledge was awesome, the example given that he knew botany from the largest trees that grew on mountains to tiny weeds that sprouts in the tiniest cracks in the wall.

When we ask God for something, we must expect the best from the Lord. We must expect that the Lord will grant us the full breadth and depth of blessings. Why? I believe the first reason is because He loves us. God only wants the best for us, nothing will be held back if it is the best for us. The second reason is because it is best for those we serve. King Solomon served as the leader of God’s nation, God wanted the very best for them and so He blessed them through King Solomon. Finally, God wants others to be drawn to having a relationship with Him. One way is to show His glory, and one way is to bless those that He loves, so that others can desire that same love. We see here that King Solomon drew many powerful and influential people from all around. I believe they came first to experience the wisdom, but then were drawn close to God.

The same pattern will work for us. If we ask God for the giftings to serve Him, He will give them to us. He wants to bless those that we serve. He wants to draw people to us, so that we can then lead them to Him. Let’s ask. Let’s receive.

Commit:

I want this pattern in my life. I want God to give me the gifts so that I can serve those around me as nobody else can. I want God to bless me so that I can draw others to me, so I can point them to God.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for showing me the purpose behind your blessing King Solomon. I ask for the same thing. Please give me the gifts I need to serve those around me. Give me the wisdom to understand them and then knowledge to give them what they need to grow in the kingdom. Please give me the gifts to draw people to myself, so that I can direct them toward you. But please keep me from sinning against you. I don’t want to be drawn away from you by the blessings.

In the name of the one who helped King Solomon to serve your people and to draw others closer to you, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Chronicles 1: 7 That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”
8 Solomon replied to God, “You showed faithful love to David, my father, and now you have made me king in his place. 9 O Lord God, please continue to keep your promise to David my father, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth! 10 Give me the wisdom and knowledge to lead them properly,[e] for who could possibly govern this great people of yours?”
11 God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people—12 I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”

Inspect:

This passage describes King Solomon being asked by God that if he could have anything he wanted what it would be. What an amazing opportunity! The God of the universe, who owned everything, who made everything, offered King Solomon anything he wanted. We see that King Solomon didn’t ask for riches, or defeat of his enemies or long-life, instead the King asked for wisdom to govern the people. What an unselfish and humble request. Unselfish certainly, because instead of asking for something for himself like peace, riches and life, he instead asked for something that he could be a blessing to the people with. Humble also, because asking for wisdom is a confession that he knew he didn’t have the capacity to rule with his own natural giftings. The Lord was please with this humble and unselfish gift and granted King Solomon’s request giving him a level of wisdom that will never be matched. In addition, God gave him what he didn’t ask for, which was wealth, peace and a long-life.

I believe this would also apply to us. We too have been give people that we have influence over to care for and direct. As a king of sorts, I believe God calls us to disciple these individuals that they would grow in spiritual maturity and then in turn make disciples themselves. We can’t do it with our natural giftings, because we like King Solomon has no experience doing this before. So we need to ask God for wisdom to bless those that God has led us to serve. We need God’s wisdom and knowledge to provide, guide and protect them.

I also believe that if we ask for this wisdom and knowledge like King Solomon in humility and unselfishness, God will bless us in a similar way to King Solomon, in that God will bless us with wealth, peace and a long-life.

Commit:

I want what King Solomon wants. I need desperately God’s knowledge and wisdom to serve those that God has brought me to. I don’t have the skills to do it. They are more important to me than anything else.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me that you’re asking me what I want, just as you did King Solomon. You have given him a kingdom to rule, I believe you have given me a kingdom to rule as well. Like Solomon, I feel inadequate, especially in this new season. Please grant me your wisdom and knowledge that I may be a blessing to those that you have given me to serve. I can’t do it on my own. The challenges are too much for me, I need your help.

In the name of the one who has given me a kingdom through the Great Commission, who will give me wisdom and knowledge through the Holy Spirit, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 29: 14 But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us!

Inspect:

This is from King David. After he donated literally tons of gold and silver he spoke the words in the scripture above. Rather than accepting the honor for his generosity, he instead said that everything he gave is made possible because God first gave him everything. What an amazing heart of humility. Yes, he could have kept everything for himself, but instead because he was so devoted to the Lord, he generously gave it back to the Lord and accepted no glory for it.

That is what we need to do as well. We need to realize that everything we have is from God. Nothing we have is from any other source. God is the only creator, everything and everybody else is a “re-creator.” So when we give to God, we are actually giving back to Him. We don’t actually have it, it is on loan for us to care for. If we don’t give it back to God, it is unlikely that He will give us any more to care for. Who would deposit their money in a bank for safekeeping, if the bank would be stubborn about giving it back to us when we requested it? No one would, we would take our moneys elsewhere.

Commit:

I must be generous with what God has given me. I must maintain the awareness that it isn’t mine, it is only loaned to me for safekeeping. I must willingly give it back to the Lord when He desires it. That demonstrates my trust and obedience in Him.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me the humility and obedience of King David. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me to be like him. Help me to remember that whatever I have is from God. Help me to remember that if I’m faithful in caring for what He has entrusted to me, He will give me more to manage.

In the name of the one who provides all my needs and entrusts me with the treasure of the Kingdom to invest and multiply, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 28: . 19 “Every part of this plan,” David told Solomon, “was given to me in writing from the hand of the Lord.[d]”
20 Then David continued, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that all the work related to the Temple of the Lord is finished correctly. 21 The various divisions of priests and Levites will serve in the Temple of God. Others with skills of every kind will volunteer, and the officials and the entire nation are at your command.”

Inspect:

King David gave very detailed instructions on the construction for the Temple to his son Solomon. Details described the dimensions of the components and the kind of and quantity of materials to be used. It could be that the precision and magnitude of the envisioned construction got Solomon a little anxious, because his father followed up with encouragement. It is understandable because if you look at the sheer size of the building, it was gigantic for the day. Then all the materials were of the very best, including vast quantities of precious woods, stone, gold and silver. Furthermore, the details and design of how things were arranged and assembled were laid out in minute detail. To add even more pressure, I think was when King David said that every part of the plan came from God, “in writing.” Wow, not only was the task huge in quantity, but it had to be done very precisely as well.

That’s why I believe that King David gave words of encouragement to his son Solomon who he was chartering with the construction of the Temple. King David told Solomon to be strong and courageous, the same charter that Moses gave to Joshua, Joshua was assigned to take over for Moses to take the people to claim the Promised Land. Solomon needed strength to carry out this challenging task. Solomon needed courage to do the task correctly. King David knew that Solomon would face fear and discouragement. There would be fear of not being able to complete the assignment correctly, there would be discouragement when things would inevitably go wrong. King David told his son that God would be with him, in fact, God would see to it, not Solomon that every work task would be finished correctly. The King then gave authority to Solomon to direct the resources of the nation to make it happen.

I believe God is giving us the same direction today. We are all given the task of building the Temple of God. In today’s terms, this means we all have a part in building God’s Kingdom. God has given us assignments in taking people, making them disciples and joining them together to work as a team to further God’s love on earth. It’s a big job, but we don’t need to fearful or discouraged. Instead we need to keep in mind, that God will be with us and it is God who will see that the work is done correctly. God has given us the authority over creation to make this happen. God will make sure we have what we need to make it happen.

Commit:

I feel like Solomon at times, where God has given me an immense task to do. It seems daunting given that God already has a plan on how it will succeed and that I need to be in a part of that plan. It isn’t going to be my plan that brings success; it is going to be God’s plan. It also seems scary that I don’t have the resources to carry out that plan, but the lesson here is that God will send the resources. So what is my role in all of this? I need trust God that He’s going to help me to do this, that He’s going to see to it that it comes out correctly and He will provide all the resources. My role then is to trust the Lord and obey Him, step by step.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this amazing word of encouragement, it is just what I needed this very day! I was just going to ask you to reveal the plans for me, but you already have. Just as King David said to Solomon that You gave him detailed plans in writing, I just realized that You also did the same thing for me, the writing is your Bible and what I need to do is to read it. I ask that you give me the strength and courage to trust you, to hang on to the truth that you will never fail me or forsake me. Help me to know that it is You who will see that the work is done correctly. Help me to trust that you will bring the volunteers of every skill that will make this happen. Help me to be faithful, to do my part.

In the name of the one who has chartered me, who will provide for me, who will see that the work will be done correctly, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 23: 1 When David was an old man, he appointed his son Solomon to be king over Israel. 2 David summoned all the leaders of Israel, together with the priests and Levites. 3 All the Levites who were thirty years old or older were counted, and the total came to 38,000. 4 Then David said, “From all the Levites, 24,000 will supervise the work at the Temple of the Lord. Another 6,000 will serve as officials and judges. 5 Another 4,000 will work as gatekeepers, and 4,000 will praise the Lord with the musical instruments I have made.” 6 Then David divided the Levites into divisions named after the clans descended from the three sons of Levi—Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

Inspect:

I see in this how much King David loved the Lord. I believe that he applied his secular gifts to worship the Lord. As the King was nearing the end of his life, I believe he wanted to leave a legacy of continuous worship for the Lord. So the King applied his leadership and organizational skills to gather a team of people, divided the work and made the assignments.

I believe that we need to do the same, we are to take the secular skills and apply them to the service of the Lord. Just as King David organized the Levites here, the Bible records that he got all kinds of craftsman, construction staff and artists to construct the sanctuary. Today this would include organizational, administrative, technical all kinds of skills. We need to apply it to the service of the Lord.

Commit:

I need to take what God has given and apply it to the Lord. I believe that God gifted me with leadership, analysis and organization. I must invest this in the service of the Lord. He gave me the gift, I must risk it and develop it for the Lord.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me what I need to do serve you. Please help me to know the gifts that you have given to me. Please help me to risk them to grow and multiply it. Help me to use them for you, to glorify you and to serve you.

In the name of the one who has given me talents and will help me to grow them to serve the Father, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Thessalonians 2: 4 For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. 5 Never once did we try to win you with flattery, as you well know. And God is our witness that we were not pretending to be your friends just to get your money! 6 As for human praise, we have never sought it from you or anyone else.

Inspect:

This is Paul writing. He’s very clear in His purpose, he’s not trying to win people over by trying to flatter them or make them feel good about him. Paul never sought compliments. His motive was pure, he wanted to share the gospel, save them, and disciple them to go make other disciples. There was no other motive.

I think sometimes we make our lives too complicated; we have the Great Commission which is to make disciples, baptize and teach. There is nothing in there about flattering, getting recognized or making money. I believe that if we do as Paul, which is to focus on disciple building with God’s Word, God will take care of the rest. God will supply all of our needs, God will affirm us, we don’t need anyone else to do so.

Commit:

I think I have this backwards at times. I think that in order to build disciples, I need to flatter people to get their attention. I think I measure my receptivity with the people I come in contact with on whether or not I receive their praise. This is backwards. I must work for God’s affirmation and not anyone else’s. People may praise me, but for the wrong reasons, God will never praise me for the wrong reason.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for helping me to understand what my mission is. Please help me to seek your affirmation and no one else’s. Help me to have pure motives, that is to not do anything for the sake of receiving gain from someone. Help me to know that I am commission by you to bring the Good News as is, it doesn’t need to be dressed up or packaged, the Word is as powerful and as effective as it needs to be.

In the name of the one who has given me my commission and will help me to do it with purity and boldness and love, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Samuel 22: 33 God is my strong fortress,
and he makes my way perfect.
34 He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain heights.
35 He trains my hands for battle;
he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.
36 You have given me your shield of victory;
your help[m] has made me great.
37 You have made a wide path for my feet
to keep them from slipping.

Inspect:

God is our strong fortress. A strong fortress is a place of protection. It is a place that we run back for safety when we come under attack. It is a place that we can go to get re-fed. It is a place that we can go to rest.

His Word said that he makes us as surefooted as deer, so that we can climb up and stand up on high heights. I believe that God doesn’t just make us surefooted, He trains us. How do we develop balance and strength to climb? We start by climbing small steps and gradually go steeper and higher. As we do so we gradually get stronger and more agile. I believe this is how God trains our spiritual muscles and agility as well. God gives us tests that require more and more spiritual muscles to climb over and stand up.

God trains our hands to fight. God knows the way to victory so He teaches us what we need to do to win. Again, He doesn’t give us victory, He teaches how to get it.

God strengthens our arms. How do we develop physical strength? We work our muscles against resistance. This breaks down our muscle fibers, and when the grow back, the grow back stronger. I believe the same must happen with our faith muscles. The Lord allows tests that challenge our level of faith, and may actually break down what we take for granted. But then, as we go back to the Lord to restore it, it comes back stronger than before.

Here’s a change, God now gives us a shield of victory. I believe that the shield is faith. When we have faith, protection comes from the Lord. When protection comes from the Lord, there is nothing we cannot do.

God has created a wide path for us. He knows our skill level at any time. He is the perfect trainer. He would never take a place where we would slip. Yet the path is not level, because He cares that we grow.

Commit:

I need to let the Lord train me. I must not complain when the going gets rough, I need to remember that He is making me stronger and more agile. I must remember that He is training me to build the skills needed to get victory. Finally, I must not forget the shield of faith, God will always protect me, if I let Him.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, you are so awesome. Thank you for being my personal trainer. Please train me. Please send me your Holy Spirit to encourage me in the midst of training, remind me that this is happening for my own good that my spiritual muscles would be strengthened and be made more agile. Finally, please help me to remember that you are my shield that no harm will come to me. Thank you that you know exactly the path I must follow to grow but not slip.

In the name of the one who loves me too much to leave me the way I am, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Matthew 28: 18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Inspect:

This is the Great Commission. Jesus having risen from the dead, now fully God, states that He has been given all authority in heaven and earth. Wow, all authority, not some authority. And in heaven and earth, not just somewhere, but everywhere. He then give us our commission, our command.

- Go make disciples of the all the nations – we are to make disciples, not just believers, not just save people, but disciples. Not just individuals but nations. Many believe, but do not commit. Many commit to be saved, but don’t commit to discipleship, to save others and make them disciples. The commission here is to have the nation redeemed, not just individuals.
- Baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit – we are to baptize them. They need to be able to boldly confess their commitment to repent and follow Christ.
- Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you – we need to teach them. We don’t just allow them learn on their own, we need to teach them. We need to teach them all the commands, not some, but all.

This is an amazingly tough assignment. However, the promise is that Jesus will always be with us. He who has given us this assignment will be with us to succeed, no matter how long it takes. He won’t give up so we shouldn’t.

Commit:

This Great Commission, not just an ordinary commission is for me. I need to be sure I understand it. Then I need to be sure to obey it. I need to remember that I’m not doing this alone, I have the Lord Jesus with me, who has promised to help me to carry this out.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for the privilege of being given this Great Commission. Please help me through the power and counsel of the Holy Spirit to carry out this Great Commission. Help me to know that you will give me everything I need to be successful in carrying it out. Help me to know that you are by my side until I have accomplished it.

In the name of the one who has given me a huge job to do, and will help me to do it, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Psalm 56: 8 You keep track of all my sorrows.[a]
You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in your book.

Inspect:

This is so amazing. God promises here that He will track our sorrows. God will collect our tears in His bottle and record each one. I think this means that God loves us so much that He is attentive when we in a bad situation, when we’re in a bad mood, when we think all is loss. God is truly a friend that is closer than a brother. It is difficult to be with someone who is full of sorrow, someone who is crying. We are more inclined to want to be with people who are happy, because we want them to cheer us up, strengthen us, make our day better, but this is not like the Lord. The Lord draws near to those who need Him. The Lord wants to give those who are sorrow strength. He wants to give comfort to those who are crying.

I believe there are two lessons for us here. One is that when we’re down and sorrow is upon us, when we’re crying, we need to remember that God is right there. We must not feel alone, knowing that God is there when no one else is. The other lesson is that we need to be like God and not shy away from people who are in sorrow. Instead we need to draw near to them and give them our care and our love. We need to pay attention to their sorrow, be there to listen to their crying. We need to God’s hands in these situations.

Commit:

I need to know that God is with me always, not just in joyful situation, but in sorrow as well. I must also seek those who are in sorrow, those that are crying. I must ask the Holy Spirit to help me bring the blessing of the Lord to them.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for caring so much for me that you would be with me in sorrow and crying. Please send your Holy Spirit to remind during these times that you care for me more than ever. Please give me the compassion and strength to draw near to those who are in sorrow, to those who are crying that I might bring your love to them.

In the name of the one who bottles my tears and tracks my sorrows, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Samuel 17: 14 Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “Hushai’s advice is better than Ahithophel’s.” For the Lord had determined to defeat the counsel of Ahithophel, which really was the better plan, so that he could bring disaster on Absalom!

Inspect:

It is encouraging to know that there is nothing that can prevent God from helping us, and also on the sobering side, there is nothing that can prevent God from bringing judgment on us. Here we see that King David’s son Absalom is coming out to get him. Two of David’s former advisors are helping Absalom. One gives a better plan which will result in David’s defeat, the other gives a plan which will give David a chance to recover his kingdom.

We see the amazing thing that God does. He puts in Absalom’s mind to discard the best plan and take the other one, the one that Absalom doesn’t realize will result in his destruction. How could this happen? Why couldn’t Absalom select the plan that would give him the ultimate victory over his father? It is because the Lord was determined that King David would prevail and Absalom would not.

This is the love of God. King David was a man after God’s own heart, and God honored the obedience and love that David had for him. God wanted to bring judgment upon Absalom for the sins of his pride and rebelliousness in the hope that he would repent from his sin, as his father King David had done. So God made it happen. God set it up so that the better plan would be rejected.

I believe this is the same for our lives. If we love and obey the Lord, there is nothing that can happen to us, without the Lord’s permission. Nobody, nothing can come against us, no matter how good it really is. On the other hand, if we’re not living right, there is nothing that will prevent God from bringing judgment on us, because He loves us. It is always God’s hope that judgment or the fear of judgment will bring us back to Him. That’s how awesome His love is.

Commit:

I need to carry this encouragement with me and not fear. I must know in my heart of hearts that God will prevent anything from coming against me no matter how strong or clever it might be, there is nothing God cannot do. On the other hand I also need to remember that there is nothing that can stop God from bringing judgment on me, because He loves me so much. I better pay attention.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for the encouragement and this warning. Help me to be encouraged to know that you are always watching out for me, and can take on anything no matter how strong or clever it is. Also let me fear your judgment, because it leads me to humility and obedience.

In the name of the one who cares for me, Jesus!

Amen

Rhema:

Psalm 32: 8 The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you.
9 Do not be like a senseless horse or mule
that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.”

Inspect:

This is an amazing promise. God Himself, the one who is more wise than anyone can ever be, the one who loves us more than anyone can ever do, the one who is always able to keep his promises has pledged to guide us, advise us and watch over us. God promises to take us along the best pathway for our lives. Consider this, God promises to take us on the best pathway, not an okay one, not the minimum necessary, but the best one. Can you imagine what God considers the best? It must be amazing. I also find it amazing that God wants what’s best for our lives and not for anyone else. God loves us individuals, and wants the best for us as and not anyone else.

However, we have our part to play as well. God promises to guide, advise and watch over us, that is His part. Our part is not be like a senseless horse or mule. What is a senseless horse or mule? It is one that requires a bit and bridle. The bit goes into the most sensitive part of the animal the mouth. The bridle goes over the head of the animal. With the bit and bridle the animal is controlled by the rider, made to go and stop, turning right or left. I believe that God doesn’t want us be controlled like this with something pressing and pulling against our mouth, a harness around our head. I believe God wants us to be like a sensible horse, one that responds to shifts in the riders weight, pressure from the knees and verbal commands. God wants us to be sensitive to His voice, the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Commit:

I want to submit to my Lord who has promised to guide on a path that is best for me. I must listen and feel carefully for his advice, for He promises to watch over me. I must not be stubborn requiring the Lord to put a bit in my mouth and a bridle on my head.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for caring so much for me. I thank you for promising to guide, advise and watch over me on the path that is best for my life. Please send me your Holy Spirit to transform me from being like a senseless mule to one that is sensitive and obedient to its master. Help me to listen carefully to feel for the leading of the Holy Spirit for direction.

In the name of the one who will guide, advise and watch over me, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Matthew 24: 45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Inspect:

Let’s see what God defines as a faithful sensible servant. The servant is some that responsibility can be given to, someone who can manage others and care for them. The good servant does the right things even when the master is not around. For this servant, the Lord will give rewards. For this servant, the Lord will give even greater responsibility. We contrast this with the bad servant. This bad servant will take advantage when the boss is not around. Instead of managing well, this servant begins to mismanage the household to profit himself. Instead of taking care of the other servants, he abuses them. When the boss returns, his responsibility is taken away, and instead of blessing, he gets punishment.

This really helps me understand what Jesus meant by a servant leader. This servant was assigned to manage the household, to care for the other staff. So this servant was a leader. He had to lead the household and serve the needs of the other staff. The servant leader knows the heart of the master and does his will, even though he is not around. I believe that this is the kind of servant leader that God wants us to be. We are to be in charge of His kingdom on earth. We are to care for others and meet their needs. We must keep doing His will even though we don’t see Him around.

We need to fear His judgment, that He may come back when we least expect it. So we need to be constantly prepared in fear of the terrible punishment. A deserved punishment.

Commit:

I need to be careful to be the faithful and sensible servant. I must manage things well as serve people. I must be constantly working even when I don’t sense the Lord. I must fear His terrible judgment.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me what you look for in a servant leader. Please help me to please you by managing well, by serving the needs of those around me. Help me to be constantly working hard. Help me to fear your judgment. I think there are times when I need to be motivated with pleasing you and other times I need to be motivated by fearing you. The bottom line is that I want to please you.

In the name of the one who was and is a servant leader to me, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Psalm 51: 16 You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
You do not want a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.

Inspect:

This psalm was written by King David after God sent Nathan to confront him of his adultery and murder. King David understands what God wants, God doesn’t want our sacrifice, instead God wants a repentant heart. God wants a heart that is broken, that is humbled. What an encouraging promise that God will not turn away a heart that is repentant and broken.

That’s the currency that God wants. God doesn’t our sacrifice, he doesn’t need it. What God doesn’t have, and desires most of all is us. That’s why we need to repent, to turn away from sin and our own ways and come to the Lord. We need to humble ourselves and realize how much we need the Lord.

Commit:

I need to put down the pride and turn away from my own way. I don’t want God’s rejection, I want His acceptance.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you that you forgive sins, even really really bad sins. King David committed adultery and murder, but because he humbled himself and turned away from sin, you would not reject him. Please send me your Holy Spirit to help me to be humble and repentant, I don’t want your rejection, I want your acceptance.

In the name of the one who wants my heart and not my sacrifice, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Psalm 55: 22 Give your burdens to the Lord,
and he will take care of you.
He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.

Inspect:

What a great scripture, we are to give our burdens to the Lord, but too often I just let Him borrow it. I give it to Him, but because I don’t see the problem being handled either timely enough, or the way I’m expecting it to be handled, I grab it back. The Word says here to give it to him, not let Him borrow it. The promise here is that God will take care of it. He promises that He will not let us slip and fall. But we don’t trust God, we don’t think He cares enough or capable enough to handle our burdens, and we’re afraid that we’re going to slip and fall. And so we keep holding onto the burden. We then either drop it, or take care of it, but don’t realize how much better it would have been for us to let God handle it.

Besides, carrying burdens makes us tired. Let’s give them to God and let Him take care of it. He’ll give us better things to do then burden carrying.

Commit:

I need to trust the Lord and give Him every burden that I’m carrying. I must get it through my stubborn head that no problem is too small for the Lord, if I’m worried about it, He’s worried about. I need to get it through my prideful head that I can deal with this problem better than God can, His way are way better than mine. I must get it passed my worrying head, that God will not let me slip and fall.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for promising to take care of me. Help me to be godly, that’s my end of the promise. I don’t think godly means that I need to be perfect. I think godly means that I’m in the mode of trying to do my best to obey you. If I’m loving you and giving you my burdens, then you will do your part of the promise which to keep me from slipping and falling. Help me to obey you and love you.

In the name of the one who will carry my burdens and keep from slipping and falling, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 19: 12 “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then come over and help me,” Joab told his brother. “And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, I will help you.

Inspect:

I believe that this is one of the reasons why King David’s armies were so strong and victorious. Humble teamwork. So often our pride gets in the way of victory and much less survival. Here one of King David’s general’s is giving instructions to one of his commanders. Since they were fighting two groups of opponents, Joab was to take a team and fight the Arameans and tasked his brother to take the other team to take on the Ammonites.

The humble teamwork is shown that here in the instruction that if they saw that the other was being overwhelmed, that they should come over and help. They swallowed their pride and willingly accepted help from the other to insure victory and survival.

I think there’s a great lesson here in our own lives. We need to have a Christian ohana that is prepared to be accept and give help when needed. We need to be willing to swallow our pride and accept help when we need it. If we let pride stop us from asking for help, we’ll be destroyed. At the same time, we need to let go of the pride that tells us our battles are more important than another, so we can stop what we’re doing and help the other.

This humble teamwork allowed King David’s to be the mightiest in the world at the time. This same humble teamwork will allow us to become the most powerful team as well.

Commit:

I need to be a humble team player. I must not be too proud to accept help. I must not be too busy to give help.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for helping me to understand how King David’s army was so strong and victorious. Help me to be a humble team player. Help me to help others to be a humble team player. Send your Holy Spirit to help me to put down my pride and ask for and accept help. Please help me to not be so busy so as to give help.

In the name of the one who come to my help, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Matthew 20: 28 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Inspect:

If the Son of God came to earth not to be served, but to serve others, what right do I have to think that I need to be served? I don’t think I’m alone in my pride, thinking that the universe revolves around me and that everything exists to serve me. This is the pride that leads to our fall.

We all really need the Holy Spirit to transform us to be like Jesus. The whole purpose of His life was to serve others. His whole mission was to rescue us from the consequences of our sin.

God’s way is so right. In the human way we try and live so that the universe will bless us, will give us what we think we deserve, but in the end if we live this way, we will get nothing, instead we will be eternally lost. In God’s way, we live to serve others. Our purpose is to give up our life, so that others might live. And in the end, we will lose our lives, but in exchange we get a life back that is far more than what we’ve given up. We get a life that doesn’t end. It is a life that is eternal, blessed by the abundance of God.

Which way do you want to live? Want it all now and lose it all later? Lose it all now, and gain it back later and more? Easy choice!

Commit:

I choose the way of Jesus. I wan to serve others. I want to give my life as a ransom for others.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I know your way is the hard way, but I want it. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me to serve others, to give my life so that others may live eternally. There is no way that I can accomplish this myself, I am willing, but my flesh is weak, come and strengthen me with your Holy Spirit!

In the name of the one who serves me, who gave up His life for me, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Psalm 106: 13 But they soon forgot what he had done
and did not wait for his counsel.

Inspect:

This is the unfortunate pattern of my life. God takes me out of a sticky situation that I’ve gotten myself into, and soon after I forget, and instead of remembering what happened in the past, I forge ahead again. Instead of taking the situation to the Lord in prayer and asking for His counsel, I just take it on myself and invariably make the wrong decision. I don’t take advantage of the fact that the Lord’s way is so much above my level. He knows the end from the beginning. He cares about what is best for me and for those around me. He can take all of these factors and do what is best all around. And all I need to do is to ask Him and wait for his counsel.

But no, I don’t wait, make the decision and what happens is that I get myself and sometimes others into a situation that I can’t get out of myself. So then and only then do I call upon the Lord to rescue me. Which He does, He always will. The Lord’s forgiveness, grace and mercy are so great is that He will always get me out the situation no matter how frequent, no matter how deep it is. At that time, I’m grateful, impetuously vowing to never get into the same situation again.

But true to God’s work, I soon forget…

Commit:

I do realize that it is human nature to repeat this cycle over and over, however I must ask the Holy Spirit to transform me, to bring back my memories of the previous time. So that I might not sin again.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for loving me even though you know I will forget about you and sin again over and over. I ask that you send me your Holy Spirit to transform my spirit, mind and body so that I won’t forget. Help me to remember the times that you’ve saved me, so that I won’t sin again.

In the name of the one who will rescue me over and over again, the one who will help transform me to break this sinful cycle, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 14: 12 He said to them, “You are the leaders of the Levite families. You must purify yourselves and all your fellow Levites, so you can bring the Ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it. 13 Because you Levites did not carry the Ark the first time, the anger of the Lord our God burst out against us. We failed to ask God how to move it properly.” 14 So the priests and the Levites purified themselves in order to bring the Ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to Jerusalem. 15 Then the Levites carried the Ark of God on their shoulders with its carrying poles, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.

Inspect:

This was the second attempt by King David to bring the Ark of God back to Jerusalem. The first attempt ended up in failure where there was anger, death and fear because King David did not obey God’s procedure for moving the Ark. For some reason King David allowed the Ark to be moved on an ox cart. And though it was a new ox cart, it was not the right way to do it. God brought down death to the man who tried to stop the Ark from falling when the oxen stumbled.

So we see here King David being more careful this time. This time he gets the Levites ready. The first time, I believe King David was so anxious and enthused about bringing the Ark back, he probably thought about the most efficient and expedient way to do it, after all he was efficient warrior. This time, he was careful and asked God. I believe God told him to do it the way that He told Moses to do it.

Yes our God loves us and there is no limit to the amount of His love. However, our God is a Holy God, and He demands that we approach Him in purity. We can’t just come to Him the way we choose. We must come to Him through Jesus Christ, we must come to Him in humility and obedience. But when we do, when we come back to Him on His terms, He come to us. And when He does, He brings with Him, His amazing unconditional, limitless love.

Commit:

I must come back to God the way He instructed to do it. I must not think of efficiency or effectiveness. I must instead think of humility and obedience. I must trust that when I do, God will come to me with His fullness, and I will completely forget what I had to give up, because it will all be worth it.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for your love for me. Help me to understand that although you love me, your instructions for me to come into your presence helps me to set aside pride and rebellion. And without setting aside pride, there can be no fully appreciating your love and your presence. Please send me your Holy Spirit to help me through these times. I need your guidance and encouragement.

In the name of the one who loves me and provides a way for me to come to the Father, in humility and obedience, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

1 Chronicles 13: 7 They placed the Ark of God on a new cart and brought it from Abinadab’s house. Uzzah and Ahio were guiding the cart. 8 David and all Israel were celebrating before God with all their might, singing songs and playing all kinds of musical instruments—lyres, harps, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets.
9 But when they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon,[c] the oxen stumbled, and Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the Ark. 10 Then the Lord’s anger was aroused against Uzzah, and he struck him dead because he had laid his hand on the Ark. So Uzzah died there in the presence of God.
11 David was angry because the Lord’s anger had burst out against Uzzah. He named that place Perez-uzzah (which means “to burst out against Uzzah”), as it is still called today.
12 David was now afraid of God, and he asked, “How can I ever bring the Ark of God back into my care?”

Inspect:

Joy. Anger. Fear. These three emotions occurred to King David as he was trying to bring the Ark of God back to Jerusalem. At first there was joy, King David was celebrating with all of his might. Then when God killed Uzzah because they disobeyed God’s instructions on how the Ark was to be moved. Then the fear comes.

I wonder if this is a pattern that we all sometimes go through. When we first come into the presence of God, we have major league joy. We celebrate with all our might, because we come into the presence of unconditional love and peace and Joy. However, the being in the presence of God, we can fall into disobedience because we still are growing yet. We get lulled by God’s mercy and grace and forget that God loves us so he punishes us when we do sin. And we being the rebellious nature we are, we get angry when the punishment comes. Our pride causes us to blame God for the consequences of sin we deserve. Then if the right thing happens, fear sets in. This is a good thing, because the fear of God is the beginning of repentance, which leads to wisdom and blessing.

Because King David finally feared God, he then obeyed God’s instructions on how to bring the Ark back, which is a model of how we need to bring God’s presence back to us. And that’s how come full circle. In obedience we can come into God’s presence. We will eventually mess up, sin, suffer the consequences and we’ll experience anger caused by pride. We must then come back to the fear of God, which we can let it lead us back to obedience, which will bring us back into the presence of God.

Commit:

I need to learn from this. I must recognize the pattern of sin and repentance. I must have the fear of God bring me back to Him. I must guard against pride that leads to anger.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for showing me how I can and must always come back to you. Please send me the Holy Spirit so that I can recognize quickly when I sin. Help me to control the anger and bring me back to fear which will lead me back to you. I want to remain in the time of joy, where I’m celebrating with all my might. Help me.

In the name of the one who will bring me back to the fear of the Father always, Jesus!

Amen.