Set on Him

Luke 9:51 “Now when the time was almost come for Jesus to be received up [to heaven], He steadfastly and determinedly set His face to go to Jerusalem.”

And to Isaiah 50:7 “For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.”

Setting our face, setting our heart… what are we set on? What are we fixed on? Do we have a determined look at the destination? A firm stand… not moving to the left or the right…

I want to have my every affection set on Him... my heart and mind guided by Him... not affected by circumstances or voices around me.

Never Forsaken

I have watched several friends go through some really tough, gut-wrenching things this past week. My heart has felt so heavy... so burdened, so emptied out for them. There is one thing that I know for sure. Our God makes no mistakes. He will never forsake us no matter what. His plan is always at work. We may not always understand or see how or why He's doing something, but He is always at work on our behalf. We have His blessed assurance!

Isaiah 43:2 "When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers, they shall not overtake thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."

Prayer Request

Yesterday I was called to come pray for a friend who, unless God intervenes, only has days left on this earth. She is a single mom with 3 teenage girls and is battling cervical cancer. Please pray for her today and the days that follow. Her name is Jennifer Gillette.

I know that the same God that healed Tanner in April of this year is able to raise her up to walk in health and strength! Thank you for believing and praying with me! By His stripes we are healed!

Faith Test

So many times we grumble and complain about the trials we go through but without them we are just conveying words instead of circumstances and experiences. Personal experiences carry so much more weight because we have LIVED out what we're saying. We can assure others that they too will make it... God WILL come through. It's a faith walk! It's in the trying of our faith that our greatest testimonies are birthed.

James 1:3-4 "Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."

I love how The Message translates this passage: "Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way."

Fear or Faith?

Sometimes the enemy of our soul will throw something at us and magnify it so we will operate in fear and miss what He is saying to us. We never have cause to fear. It's funny how this vein of thought came about... I was walking in silence again... it's getting too hot for that but I attempt it when I can. I have found a relatively safe place to walk but lately we have had some random break ins in our area which causes us all to be more "on guard". As I'm walking around in my "safe park", I see 2 guys that are very questionable. They are obviously not there for exercise and seem to be more in the "observing mode". I know... who am I to judge and put people in a category? We all do it. We don't want to, but we do. I caught myself looking around for them at every turn. I sped up to keep up with the "safe man" that was a good distance ahead of me. These quiet walks have been such a refuge for me... a place to be in silence and enjoy God's beautiful scenery and to hear His voice. I had blocked Him out for those first few laps because of my fear and worry.

Luke 12:32 "Fear not, little flock, for it is the Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom."

The previous verse says "seek ye the Kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you." Verse 29 says "...neither be ye of doubtful mind." (live not in careful suspense).

2 Timothy 1:7 "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind."

It's easier to understand how I operated in fear at the park, but what about the times when we are worrying so much about the other details of our lives that we aren't letting Him whisper His sweet promises into our spirit? We make a choice every day. Do we choose fear or faith?