The world will never get it right if the church doesn’t get it right first. It all starts with the church. The world has less of God and less of Jesus because the church has less of God and Jesus. The church instead of truly worshiping God/Jesus with reckless abandon instead is prostituting Jesus for marketing personal goals and desires instead of worshipping and honoring God through total surrenderance.
Jeremiah 2:13 (NIV)
13 “My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns,broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
Preaching our opinions have no authority but is just information. The only authority one has is preaching the gospel directly out of Gods word. That’s what authority comes from. That’s where the power comes from.
Hebrews 4:12-13 New International Version (NIV)
12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
We have to stop sugar coating SIN and call it all SIN for what it is and that starts in the body first.
Hebrews 10:26-27 (NIV)
26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.
We have dropped the ball on the great commission. We were called to make disciples not for the sake of discipleship but teaching them to obey everything that Jesus had commanded. We tell them but are we teaching them to obey his commands and holding ourselves and others accountable. Is the world failing because of SIN YES but what a difference it would be if there were true disciples? Are there any true disciples?
Where are the true disciples? It’s time to come forth.
Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
It’s time to stop prostituting Jesus for our own personal gain and obey his command to go make true disciples.
Five true life points we can take from Ezekiel chapter 34
1. God will hold his church accountable for his people
Ezekiel 34:8-10
8 As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, 9 therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 10 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them.
2. God can do it all by himself but he allows us to be a part of his ministry
15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
3. God has compassion for those weak in their faith and is willing to save them.
21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.
4. God will rescue his people who are enslaved by sin and they will know it was truly him who saved them.
27 The trees will yield their fruit and the ground will yield its crops; the people will be secure in their land. They will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them. 28 They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid.
5. God will shower down blessings in seasons. Look close below it says showers of blessing not shower of blessing.
26 I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.
When you hear the word gatekeeper what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Websters dictionary’s definition of a gatekeeper says it’s 1: an attendant at a gate who is employed to control who goes through it. 2: a person or thing that controls access to something. Now knowing the definition for what a gatekeeper is according to Websters dictionary. Do you believe you are a gatekeeper? If you answered no to that question, after reading this you may reconsider. So where and when did gatekeepers come into existence? The gatekeepers responsibilities started thousands of years ago in the Bible. This job was a huge responsibility that God put on some of the chosen Levite’s that required trust and accountability. If you were picked to handle this duty everyone knew that you had to be trust worthy person because your main job was to guard the gates of the house of the Lord on all four sides and to maintain the rooms and the treasuries within it. You also were responsible for articles used in the temple and the furnishings of the temple. In order to give you a better picture of where I’m going with this and how it relates to you. I’m going to share with you some scriptures from the Bible.
1 Chronicles 9:22-27 New International Version (NIV)
22 Altogether, those chosen to be gatekeepers at the thresholds numbered 212. They were registered by genealogy in their villages. The gatekeepers had been assigned to their positions of trust by David and Samuel the seer. 23 They and their descendants were in charge of guarding the gates of the house of the Lord—the house called the tent of meeting. 24 The gatekeepers were on the four sides: east, west, north and south. 25 Their fellow Levites in their villages had to come from time to time and share their duties for seven-day periods. 26 But the four principal gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted with the responsibility for the rooms and treasuries in the house of God. 27 They would spend the night stationed around the house of God, because they had to guard it; and they had charge of the key for opening it each morning.
After reading the scriptures do you believe you’re a gatekeeper? The magic answer to that question should be yes and here’s why. God has given us in our lives multiple responsibilities here on Earth. We are the gatekeepers of our homes, communities, place of employment, churches and every other area of our lives that we are responsible for. We are to monitor and be responsible for what we allow in and out of our homes, communities, churches and so on. God has entrusted these things into our care and it’s our responsibility to do good-by them. So are you a gatekeeper? Yes, so embrace it!!
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
The Word of God left us some valuable lessons we could learn from those who came before us. God looked out for us by giving us his word in-spite of what happened in the Garden of Eden thousands of years ago. King Josiah whose story is told in 2 Kings chapter twenty two and twenty three is someone we all can truly learn from. Here are four quick facts about King Josiah who became king at the young age of 8 that we could learn from.
1. When he heard the Word of God his heart was convicted.
2 Kings 22:11 New International Version
11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes.
2. He shared God’s word after hearing it showing true leadership as a King.
2 Kings 23:2-3 New International Version
2 He went up to the temple of the Lord with the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the Lord. 3 The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord—to follow the Lord and keep his commands, statutes and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book.
3. His people followed his leadership because he was willing to lead by example.
2 Kings 23:3 Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.
4. He got rid of anything that was against God’s will
2 Kings 23:4-7 New International Version
4 The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the Lord all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel. 5 He did away with the idolatrous priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem—those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts. 6 He took the Asherah pole from the temple of the Lord to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem and burned it there. He ground it to powder and scattered the dust over the graves of the common people. 7 He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes that were in the temple of the Lord, the quarters where women did weaving for Asherah.
#weallcanlearnsomethingfromjosiah
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
10 You wearied yourself by such going about, but you would not say, ‘It is hopeless.’
You found renewal of your strength, and so you did not faint.
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
If you don’t know your true identity you may find yourself trying to be someone else. Instead of trying to be someone else just be you. Who are you? Psalm 139:14-17 New International Version 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;your works are wonderful, I know that full well. So be-careful who you try to imitate because that person may not be who God called you to be.
2 Kings 17:15 New International Version (NIV)
15 They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their ancestors and the statutes he had warned them to keep. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the Lord had ordered them, “Do not do as they do.”
If you’re looking for someone worthy of imitating, imitate Christ!!!
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
As we celebrated Veterans Day yesterday a thought came to my mind. What if all the men and women who served including myself were to busy and never served. What if our Law Enforcement community were too busy to serve? What kind of impact or affect would that have on us today. What type of situation would we be in. Lately God has been pressing upon my heart to serve more and encourage others to serve. I truly believe that a lot of us want to use our time-serving others but we’re so busy. So busy that we can’t give just a little of our time to those who may need it. When we serve others we’re showing them that their important and worth our time.
I know that this is something that’s on Gods heart because just this morning a good friend of mine out of the blue as I was preparing to write this, shared what God put on her heart how she could serve others. She decided that she was going to put care packages together for the homeless and hand them out and this is what they look like.
This young lady is super busy just like everyone else but she made time. I know because of this other’s are going to be blessed and God is going to bless her back in return for her obedience and sacrifice. Jesus served others in so many ways and one of them was with his time. Jesus used his time to encourage others, to pray for others, to heal others, to teach others, to feed others and to bless others. Allowing God to use us to serve others not only provides a blessing for them but also to us. I would like to share a story in the Bible about a woman with a servant’s heart that blessed others not knowing in the end that her willingness to serve would end up blessing her. I would encourage you to read the scriptures in its entirety to feel the true power that comes with serving others.
2 Kings 4:8-36 New International Version (NIV)
8 One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat. 9 She said to her husband, “I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. 10 Let’s make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us.”
11 One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. 12 He said to his servant Gehazi, “Call the Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. 13 Elisha said to him, “Tell her, ‘You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army?’”
She replied, “I have a home among my own people.”
14 “What can be done for her?” Elisha asked.
Gehazi said, “She has no son, and her husband is old.”
15 Then Elisha said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. 16 “About this time next year,” Elisha said, “you will hold a son in your arms.”
“No, my lord!” she objected. “Please, man of God, don’t mislead your servant!”
17 But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.
18 The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers. 19 He said to his father, “My head! My head!”
His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 20 After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. 21 She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out.
22 She called her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return.”
23 “Why go to him today?” he asked. “It’s not the New Moon or the Sabbath.”
“That’s all right,” she said.
24 She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Lead on; don’t slow down for me unless I tell you.” 25 So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel.
When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, “Look! There’s the Shunammite! 26 Run to meet her and ask her, ‘Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?’”
“Everything is all right,” she said.
27 When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me why.”
28 “Did I ask you for a son, my lord?” she said. “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t raise my hopes’?”
29 Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand and run. Don’t greet anyone you meet, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy’s face.”
30 But the child’s mother said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her.
31 Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, “The boy has not awakened.”
32 When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch. 33 He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the Lord. 34 Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out on him, the boy’s body grew warm. 35 Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.
36 Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite.” And he did. When she came, he said, “Take your son.”
This Shunammite woman was not serving others to be blessed, but God blessed her anyway because of her heart and compassion to serve others. So I challenge you to find a way to serve others not looking for something in return but instead looking to bless others. Then watch God turn around and blessed you because of your pure and servant heart.
Tear Jerking Inspirational Video!!!
SERVE OTHERS BY GIVING YOURSELF AWAY!!
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
God’s word tells us in Psalm 37:4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. The desires that Lord is talking about here is godly desires. His word also warns us in Proverbs 11:6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires. The evil desires the Lord is talking about here are the desires that goes against everything he stands for. These selfish desires only lead to destruction and he opposes them.
Before we get deep into this topic know that having desires within itself is not bad. Just think if people didn’t have desires then things wouldn’t be the way they are today. So there is nothing wrong with desires because they can be positive. The problem comes when we begin to have desires that Lord opposes. How many lives have heard about being destroyed by ungodly and selfish desires that Satan was allowed to plant. In most of these cases the person’s only concern are themselves and what they want. They fail to realize the effect it may have on others and themselves. Why? because Satan’s the master of selfishness.
Just look at the recent school shooting that took place in Seattle. A young man’s desire for a young ladies affection who he felt rejected him led to his death and others also causing physical and emotional injuries to others involved. This situation was about him and no one else and the outcome was Satan doing what he does best which is using certain desires to destroy people. Stories like this aren’t new and has exited thousands of years ago.
2 Samuel 13 New International Version (NIV)
13 In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David.
2 Amnon became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he made himself ill. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.
3 Now Amnon had an adviser named Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Jonadab was a very shrewd man. 4 He asked Amnon, “Why do you, the king’s son, look so haggard morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?”
Amnon said to him, “I’m in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
5 “Go to bed and pretend to be ill,” Jonadab said. “When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food in my sight so I may watch her and then eat it from her hand.’”
6 So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, “I would like my sister Tamar to come and make some special bread in my sight, so I may eat from her hand.”
7 David sent word to Tamar at the palace: “Go to the house of your brother Amnon and prepare some food for him.” 8 So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon, who was lying down. She took some dough, kneaded it, made the bread in his sight and baked it. 9 Then she took the pan and served him the bread, but he refused to eat.
“Send everyone out of here,” Amnon said. So everyone left him. 10 Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food here into my bedroom so I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the bread she had prepared and brought it to her brother Amnon in his bedroom. 11 But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, “Come to bed with me, my sister.”
12 “No, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me! Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing. 13 What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you.” 14 But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.
15 Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, “Get up and get out!”
16 “No!” she said to him. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me.”
But he refused to listen to her. 17 He called his personal servant and said, “Get this woman out of my sight and bolt the door after her.” 18 So his servant put her out and bolted the door after her. She was wearing an ornate robe, for this was the kind of garment the virgin daughters of the king wore. 19 Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornate robe she was wearing. She put her hands on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.
After reading the scriptures we can see that Ammon concern wasn’t about Tamar but about his desire. Once he got what he wanted he threw Tamar to the curb leaving her life shattered. Tamar never recovered from this experience never being the same. That’s what Satan wants with our lives.
Genesis 4:7 New International Version (NIV)
7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
God left us many promises and verses we can be encouraged by.
Psalm 145:19 New International Version (NIV)
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.
1 John 2:17 New International Version (NIV)
17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
So I encourage you to use God’s word to test ever desire you have making sure it’s within God’s will for your life.
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
I encourage you to listen to the song below because it will bless you!!
Have you ever attempted to fix a problem for someone else or thought that they wanted something and you ended up being wrong? You really thought you were helping but later realized that you only made the problem worse for your-self or them? Well I’ve experienced that several times in my life. I can remember a time listening to my wife tell me some difficult things she was dealing with at work. I can remember thinking to myself while she was talking how I could fix her situation. What do you think I did after finding out the difficulties she was having at work? Well I went to her boss and addressed the situation thinking that’s what she wanted failing to realize she still had to work there. Well it did change somethings, but it also made my wife uncomfortable at work. She also let me know she only wanted me to listen and not try to save the day. Has this ever happened to you? Our intent maybe well but sometimes we need to just sit back and let things run its course because God’s in control. Problems like this doesn’t only exist today but it existed way before our time way back into the bible days. In the Book on Samuel we see this play out more than once. Follow along as I break these scriptures down.
2 Samuel 3:12-18 New International Version (NIV)
12 Then Abner sent messengers on his behalf to say to David, “Whose land is it? Make an agreement with me, and I will help you bring all Israel over to you.”
13 “Good,” said David. “I will make an agreement with you. But I demand one thing of you: Do not come into my presence unless you bring Michal daughter of Saul when you come to see me.” 14 Then David sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, demanding, “Give me my wife Michal, whom I betrothed to myself for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins.”
15 So Ish-Bosheth gave orders and had her taken away from her husband Paltiel son of Laish. 16 Her husband, however, went with her, weeping behind her all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go back home!” So he went back.
17 Abner conferred with the elders of Israel and said, “For some time you have wanted to make David your king. 18 Now do it! For the Lord promised David, ‘By my servant David I will rescue my people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and from the hand of all their enemies.’”
In the verses above King David and Abner agreed that if Abner gave him Michal to be is wife then Abner would go away in peace and Abner would encourage all of Israel to make David King. Ish-Bosheth who is mentioned above was the son of King Saul and was very close with Abner. Abner prior to this chapter had killed the brother of Joab one of David leaders because he refused to stop following him. When Joab finds out about David’s agreement to allow Abner to live in peace he wasn’t happy so he decided to take matters into his own hands against the kings knowledge.
2 Samuel 3:23-27 New International Version (NIV)
23 When Joab and all the soldiers with him arrived, he was told that Abner son of Ner had come to the king and that the king had sent him away and that he had gone in peace.
24 So Joab went to the king and said, “What have you done? Look, Abner came to you. Why did you let him go? Now he is gone! 25 You know Abner son of Ner; he came to deceive you and observe your movements and find out everything you are doing.”
26 Joab then left David and sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the cistern at Sirah. But David did not know it. 27 Now when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into an inner chamber, as if to speak with him privately. And there, to avenge the blood of his brother Asahel, Joab stabbed him in the stomach, and he died.
Joab as you can see took things into his own hands and it ended up affecting many people. Ish-Bosheth (King Saul’s son) became afraid for his own life after found out what happened to Abner thinking King David had him killed. (His fear caused those around him to become fearful) and two of his men decided just like Joab to take things into their own hands.
2 Samuel 4 New International Version (NIV)
4 When Ish-Bosheth son of Saul heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he lost courage, and all Israel became alarmed. 2 Now Saul’s son had two men who were leaders of raiding bands. One was named Baanah and the other Rekab; they were sons of Rimmon the Beerothite from the tribe of Benjamin—Beeroth is considered part of Benjamin, 3 because the people of Beeroth fled to Gittaim and have resided there as foreigners to this day.
4 (Jonathan son of Saul had a son who was lame in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but as she hurried to leave, he fell and became disabled. His name was Mephibosheth.)
5 Now Rekab and Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, set out for the house of Ish-Bosheth, and they arrived there in the heat of the day while he was taking his noonday rest. 6 They went into the inner part of the house as if to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rekab and his brother Baanah slipped away.
7 They had gone into the house while he was lying on the bed in his bedroom. After they stabbed and killed him, they cut off his head. Taking it with them, they traveled all night by way of the Arabah. 8 They brought the head of Ish-Bosheth to David at Hebron and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, your enemy, who tried to kill you. This day the Lord has avenged my lord the king against Saul and his offspring.”
9 David answered Rekab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble, 10 when someone told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and put him to death in Ziklag. That was the reward I gave him for his news! 11 How much more—when wicked men have killed an innocent man in his own house and on his own bed—should I not now demand his blood from your hand and rid the earth of you!”
12 So David gave an order to his men, and they killed them. They cut off their hands and feet and hung the bodies by the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-Bosheth and buried it in Abner’s tomb at Hebron.
These two men Rekab and Baanah thought that if they killed Ish-Bosheth and brought his head to King David that would make him proud and their lives would be spared. That wasn’t the case and they ended up being killed because they killed and innocent man. They took matters into their own hands thinking King David wanted him dead and it cost them.
What are somethings in your life that you have dealt with on your own that has caused you pain? God just might be trying to tell you to place them on his shoulders giving it all to him!!!
Psalm 55:22 New International Version (NIV)
22 Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
1 Peter 5:7 New International Version (NIV)
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
I pray that as you go through this journey called life that you place all of your struggles and burdens on Jesus shoulders and that you never lose site of the fact, that if you have a relationship with the Lord in the end Jesus wins and because of that you also win.
I can’t miss this opportunity so if your reading this now and you don’t have a relationship with the Lord please don’t exit before doing so because Jesus wants to do something that you can’t do yourself and that is save you. If your willing to allow Jesus to become your personal savior say this prayer. Pray Lord I confess with my mouth that you are Lord and believe in my heart that you rose from the dead for my sins. I ask for forgiveness of my sins and ask that you come into my heart teaching me and guiding me in the way that I should live in Jesus name I pray Amen!!! If you said this prayer and you meant it from your heart you are now saved by the blood of Jesus!!
I encourage you to listen to the song below because it will bless you!!
McSellers Thought Of The Day 