Where Are You Looking?

With the state of today’s economy and the trying situations around the world people find themselves wondering where to look for help.  Many are looking to the new president and his administration to pull us out of hard times.  Others are looking  to the new age religion being endorsed by popular TV hosts.  While still others are lost not knowing where to look.  We can get encouragement by the call of Isaiah and where he looked.

Look Toward Heaven –  The Upward Look (v 1-4)

We can see from this scripture the first place Isaiah looked was toward heaven.  When Isaiah turned his look toward heaven he saw the Lord.  Until a person sees God for who He really is they will never be able to see themselves for who they really are.  Isaiah was given a glimpse of heaven and he saw the Lord on his throne in all his splendor.  This vision allowed Isaiah to see the contrast between the holiness and perfection of God and the ungodliness and sinfulness of man.  God is perfectly perfect and is separated from man because of man’s sinful nature.  God is the standard by which all moral and spiritual character is measured.  By seeing the separateness of God Isaiah was confronted with his own sinfulness and the sinfulness of humanity.  When a person truly sees the Lord everything changes.

Look at Yourself – The Inward Look (v 5-7)

Once Isaiah had the Upward look toward heaven he was forced to take the inward look at himself.  What he saw inside himself was not very pleasant to look upon.  Look at what different translation tell us about Isaiah’s reaction to the inward look.     

·        Jerusalem Bible: “What a wretched state I am in! I am lost…    

·        KJV: “Woe is me, I am undone…”    

·        NASB: “…I am ruined…”    

·        NLT: “My destruction is sealed…”    

·        MSG: “"Doom! It's Doomsday! I'm as good as dead!” 

Isaiah saw the great difference between the holiness of God and his own failures because of sin.  Isaiah also saw that God offers him forgiveness from his sin.  What Isaiah experienced is exactly what John promised in 1 John 1:9 - “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”    As Isaiah looked inward he saw himself as sinful but because of God’s mercy he was able to see himself as forgiven.  There is no greater message of hope than the message that God forgives sin.  It is sin, and sin alone that separates us from God, and it is God, and God alone who can forgive us of our sins.  Jesus didn’t come to earth to start a new religion, but to remind mankind that God desires to have a relationship with all people, and to give His life on the cross to make that possible.

Look at the Lost – The Outward Look (v8-9)

As Isaiah was having that inward look at himself he heard God call; “Whom should I send…Who will go?”  And Isaiah responded immediately, “I’ll go…send me!”  That is an OUTWARD look.  That is a missionary vision.  It was a vision that began by Looking Upward and seeing that God is worthy of our worship.  It was made possible by Looking Inward and seeing himself as sinful and that God forgives.  Now Isaiah was Looking Outward to the world where he was being sent.    

God told him in the verses that follow that he was going to preach and people weren’t going to understand.  He was going to try and open their eyes to the greatness of God’s salvation but they were going to refuse to see.  He was going to try and open their ears to God’s offer of forgiveness but they were going to refuse to hear.  Isaiah asked the LORD quite honestly: “How long will I have to do this?”  God’s answer was that it would be a lifetime commitment.  Isaiah had the strength stick it out because he had seen God.

It has been stated “Before you can have out-reach there must first be an up-reach and an in-reach.”  Our ministry philosophy should be as follows:

     1st minister to God (Look Upward)
     2nd let God minister to you (Look Inward)
     3rd minister to others from the overflow (Look Outward)

Power of Meditation

by Steven Mills

    The great healing evangelist John G. Lake attributed his healing ministry to his meditation in the word of God.  It was said that he was never more than arms length away from his Bible. The word of God should be the most valuable thing in our lives.  Psalms 19:7-14 gives us a wonderful description of God’s word.  At the end of describing the Word of God the psalmist prays that the meditation of his heart would be acceptable to God.  He was talking about meditating on God’s word.

     What you meditate on establishes what you believe either for good or bad.  Meditation is close and continued thought, the turning or revolving of a subject in the mind, serious contemplation.  Thoughts that move our emotions establish our belief system.  When you meditate on things of this world then you will begin to rely upon the world and your ways of the world.  In the same manor when you meditate on the Word of God you begin to rely on God and you will walk by faith.  The things you meditate on are determined by the things you delight in (Psalms 1:1-3).

     People go after what makes them feel good (what they delight in) and they think on these things.  When you find yourself constantly thinking on something that is what you delight in.  It is impossible to be delivered from an addiction until you delight in God and His word more than the thing you are addicted to.  This is because you will always give preference to the things you delight in.  You will seek what you delight in.

     Matthews 6:28-34 says, when you seek first the Kingdom of God than everything you need will be added to you.  To seek the Kingdom of God you must delight yourself in the things of the Kingdom of God.  This delight comes by meditating on God’s Word.  Jesus had considered creation and his faith grew as a result.  If God takes care of the flowers and the animals how much more will he take care of His people.  We need a belief system that defaults toward God when things are going good and when things are going bad.  Where are your default settings? Are they on God and His Word, the things of the world, or yourself? What do you seek and delight in?  We need an action plan to make sure we are delighting in the Word of God.

An Action Plan To Meditate On God’s Word

1. Develop a plan to delight in God and His word.  (Acts 17:11)

The men of Berea were diligent to search the Word of God daily to see if what they heard was true.  You need to make sure that we have a daily schedule to read God’s word and time to meditate on what we read.

1. Go to battle for your mind.  (2 Corinthians 5:10)

You need to battle for the control of your minds because everyone of us will stand before God to give an account of what we did in this life.  Your mind is guarded by the Word of God. 

1. Only meditate on good things.  (Philippians 4:8)

Each person makes a choice daily of what they meditate on.  Determine to only think on things that are pleasing to God.  Be very careful what you read and what you watch because these things determine what you meditate upon.

1. Reject passivity and take action to control of your mind.  (2 Corinthians 10:4-6)

God has given His people spiritual weapons that are able to bring every thought into the captivity of Christ.  Meditation on the Word of God is the only way to take control of your mind and thought life.

     In the same way John G. Lake attributed his powerful healing ministry to his meditation on the Word of God we will also see the power of the Holy Spirit manifested in our lives as we meditate on the Word of God.  Make a commitment to God in 2010 to spend more time meditating on God’s Word.  As every member of the body of Christ meditates on the Word of God the church will be a powerful witness in the nation.

Help!!  What Am I Supposed To Do Now?

The Role of the Discipler in the Character Development Process of his Disciple.

• Their everyday life has been given to God.
• What God is doing takes priority in their lives.
• They have been changed to live by the values of the the Kingdom of God and not according to the values of the world.
• Their attention fixed on God.

Practical steps of guidance for disciple makers

1. You must get to know them

a.       Spend time with them in real life situations. (Ac 4:13) Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

b.      Visit their home - let them visit your home.  (Ac 1:39) He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.

c.       Minister with them - what are their strengths and their weaknesses

d.      Learn active listening skills

1. Discipleship is tailor made to the needs of each person

a.       Look for the potential within them – move them toward their potential

b.      Look for the signs of fruitfulness – create an environment conducive for fruit bearing

c.       Make sure what you ask them to do fits their gifts and calling

1. Understand God hooked you up with these people so you can serve them

a.       Pray for them and their family

b.      Teach them the Word of God

c.       Teach them how to pray

d.      Help them get control over their finances and their time.

e.       Help them to order their family

1. Help them reach their potential

a.       Make room for them to exercise their gifts

b.      Give them a chance - to succeed or fail

c.       Give constructive correction in a spirit of love

1. Lay down your life for your disciples

a.       Be available

b.      People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care

c.       Be committed to them

The Road from Bondage to Freedom

By Steven Mills

Exodus 14:9-16

The book of Exodus is the account of the journey of the people of God from Egypt to Canaan. Egypt is a type of bondage and Canaan represents freedom. God is interested in His people moving from bondage to freedom. There are several things we need to understand as we take the journey from bondage to freedom.

Forget the past

Philippians 3:13-14 says, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”  One of the main problems the children of Israel had in the wilderness was they were continually remembering the things back in Egypt. They had limited recall of the past as they only remembered the good food they had. For some reason they forgot the abuse, hard labor and slavery that was also back in Egypt.  It is very difficult to drive a car if we are always looking in the rear-view mirror. We do not drive looking in the mirror but looking out the windshield at the future. Christians who live their lives in the past are normally going nowhere for God. We must always be looking ahead at where God wants us to go and not constantly looking back at where we have been. Yes, from time to time we scan the mirror to make sure everything behind us is ok and there is no danger coming up to cause us harm. However, our focus must always be forward.

We read in Hebrews 12:2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  Plato said, "when you look into a raging river you never see the same river twice.”

Believe God for the Impossible

Luke tells us in Luke 1:37, For with God nothing shall be impossible.  In Jeremiah 32:27 we read, Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?  Always remember there is nothing impossible with God.

Israel was standing with a flooded Red Sea in front of them and the fast approaching army of Egypt behind them. It was an impossible situation but God said in Exodus 14:15, "Why do you cry to me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward." God was simply looking for obedience and trust in Him. He was ready to do the impossible when His people obeyed His command.  We simply need to look at God's track record to understand He is a god of the impossible. Noah faced an impossible task but God did the impossible. The same was true with Daniel in the lion’s den, the three Hebrews in the fiery furnace, the virgin Mary, Jesus calming the sea and feeding the multitude. When God people obey His voice He is always there to do the impossible.

Go Looking for the Giants

Joshua 14:9-13 says, “And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God. And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said. And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.”  Forty-five years earlier this same Caleb stood before the people and said, "Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it." After all those years he still believed the word of God.  Caleb was not shrinking back from the giants rather he was demanding Joshua give him his inheritance so he could finally go up and possess his land. 

The land has been given to us by God but we must go possess our land.  Most believers spend their prayer time telling God how big their problems are when they should be telling their problems how big their God is.