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Humility is Relevant

James 4:10 (AMP) Humble yourselves [with an attitude of repentance and insignificance] in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you [He will lift you up, He will give you purpose].

Did you dream of being famous when you were younger? I believe at one point all of us dreamed of being in the movies or admired. I loved the movie Annie growing up. I could be found swinging on my grandparents swing set singing Tomorrow at the top of my lungs. I would sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow from Wizard of Oz and Somewhere Out There from An American Tail. You know what, this girl cannot sing. I do it around my husband just to be funny, because it is comedically awful.

Right now, social media is a platform where people can be relevant. Regular people can become “Tik Tok famous” or have “followers”. I would rather be obedient than relevant. I am grieved by the state of the church right now, by wanting to be relevant. Do you know that He has already given us purpose? It saddens me that there is a voice of division going on inside that is supposed to be seeking unity. What are we to be unified under? The Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The enemy wants us confused and set apart from each other. I was reading Luke the other day and came across this scripture, Luke 9:46, “An argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest [surpassing the others in esteem and authority].” What happens when we start pointing out things amongst the body of Christ? Who is watching? Verse 47,  “But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and had him stand beside Him.” I believe in correction, but I also believe we can slide into self-righteousness very easily. I want to draw others closer to Christ, not cause them to withdraw from Him because of the Body.

Psalms 69:32 (AMP) The humble have seen it and are glad; you who seek God [requiring Him as your greatest need], let your heart revive and live.

What we think on will affect our hearts. It will affect how we love not only God, but how we love each other. When He talked about removing the plank in your own eye (Matthew 7:5), before you remove the speck in another’s, He was saying to search within yourself to not cause another to stumble. Our planks can trip others up. It is not saying to stop correcting entirely, it is saying check your motive because we can be biased in some things. Do you genuinely care for them? Do you want the change because it would be best for you or is this the best way to draw them closer to Christ?

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (AMP)  For the love of Christ controls and compels us, because we have concluded this, that One died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that all those who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and was raised for their sake.

So, to all those that want to be seen, you have been seen by the One that loves you so much that He died for you. Let us share the goodness of God with others. Let us seek His glory. That is my heart in this time. Did the words that I say speak of Your Goodness and Mercy? Did the message we preach point to You? Nothing else matters. Jesus gave us authority, but He also tells us what is most valuable. Nevertheless, because we can slide into pride and self-righteousness so very easily. What is it for and who did it come from?

Luke 10:19-20 (AMP) Listen carefully: I have given you authority [that you now possess] to tread on serpents and scorpions, and [the ability to exercise authority] over all the power of the enemy (Satan); and nothing will [in any way] harm you. Nevertheless do not rejoice at this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.

I was in prayer and went over something I had written a few years ago for my husband and myself. I pray this over us quite often but wanted to put it out here for you to be able to pray it as well.

Lord, Your Word says You set Yourself against the proud and give favor to the humble (James 4:6). I know we fail sometimes. In fact, we are at times so full of pride that we do not bring You any glory. So I pray for humility for myself and my family. I submit this to You, because I know it is what I want in my life. Lord, You said that pride breeds quarrels (Proverbs 13:10). Make us humble people who receive advice and find wisdom. Take away any pride and give us humble hearts that are obedient to You. Seach our hearts and make a change within us. You said blessed are those who are meek and humble of heart (Matthew 5:5). That is who we desire to be. We desire for Your glory to be seen through us. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Whoever has ears, let them hear!

Acts 2:17 (MEV) ‘In the last days it shall be,’ says God, ‘that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.

Why does God choose to speak to us in different ways? Some have dreams, some see visions, some see angels…how does God speak to you? The bigger question is, are you really hearing and doing what He speaks to you?

When the Holy Spirit pour out on your life, He will inspire dreams and visions, which will picture not just your present and future, but those you are to impact for His glory. Dreams and visions always conform to biblical truth. They will not present individualism. They will not cause you to fight against flesh and blood. Their purpose is to establish His Kingdom here on earth.

What if you say, “God does not talk to me.” What if the real reason is because we have become selective in what we choose to hear? For Mother’s Day I have this big pile of giveaways for our church, enough to require a table to be brought out to display them all. I had asked for my oldest to come with me and instructed him to grab the small table in the room we were in and that I would be on my way with a table cloth to put on the table. As I walked into the room, and the place we put the table, I see the large table and them placing the items on the table without table cloth. My son heard “table” and that is what he went on.

A lot of the times God is speaking, but we are selective in what we choose to hear. Or, we do not like how it is being brought to us. We want to hear His audible voice like he spoke to Samuel in (1 Samuel 3). God is not a human being. He is God. He can talk to you however He wants to, not the way you want Him to. Humans are limited, God is not. He can communicate through other followers, through experiences, through your gifts, through dreams, through visions, through nature…the list is endless. When you have ears to hear.

Matthew 11:15 (NIV) Whoever has ears, let them hear.

The Hebrew word for hear is shama. It means to hear, to listen, to pay heed, to obey. The voice of God will always line up with His Word. Here is my test: 1) Will it cause division? This is me being self seeking, the benefactor is me and it does not matter what division it will cause in the body of Christ. This will not line up with God. 2) Will it help establish His kingdom here on earth? This is the heart of a servant. My actions benefit God’s plan and purpose in others and me. This glorifies God and I can believe that it is His voice (no matter if it is out of my comfort).

If you get the chance today, read Acts 10. It is a great example of how God speaks to us and what happens when we obey. He can speak to us in different ways. He speaks to me in different illustrations of His Word. He speaks to me to be generous. He speaks to me to bake and deliver goodies. He speaks to me to buy flowers and deliver them. Whoever has ears, let them hear!

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Who have you been with?

Acts 4:7-8 (AMP) When they had put the men in front of them, they repeatedly asked, “By what sort of power, or in what name [that is, by what kind of authority], did you do this [healing]?” Then Peter, filled with [the power of] the Holy Spirit, said to them…

John and Peter worked side by side in ministry. John was referred to as the beloved and we know Peter to be quick to act and speak. They still ministered together. The early church was about unity. The early church was about pointing everyone to Christ. Think about what the body of Christ would do today if we focused on just that. Instead, if we have a “Peter” we talk about how too harsh or crass they are and draw away from them. Not realizing their heart is pure. We are a people who judge on the outward, but God does not.

As I was praying yesterday before church, I came across chapter 4 of the Book of Acts in one of my devotionals. Peter and John had just healed a man.They have a crowd they are talking to at this point, proclaiming the Name of Jesus, reported that 5,000 men received salvation! There were the Sadducees and the temple guards listening and becoming very annoyed, some translations say indignant. So they have them arrested. Peter and John spend an evening in jail, then are brought before the magistrates and priests. When asked by what sort of power, or in what name did they do this healing, it was Peter who spoke up. It says he was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Peter said, “if we are being put on trial today [to interrogate us] for a good deed done to [benefit] a disabled man, as to how this man has been restored to health, let it be known and clearly understood by all of you, and by all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you [demanded be] crucified [by the Romans and], whom God raised from the dead—in this name [that is, by the authority and power of Jesus] this man stands here before you in good health. This Jesus is the stone which was despised and rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief Cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation].” Acts 4:9-12 (AMP)

Acts 4:13 (AMP) Now when the men of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Court) saw the confidence and boldness of Peter and John, and grasped the fact that they were uneducated and untrained [ordinary] men, they were astounded, and began to recognize that they had been with Jesus.

They recognized that these men had been with Jesus. It reminded me of another story in the Bible about a life change happening after she had been with Jesus: John 4:28-30 (AMP)  Then the woman left her water jar, and went into the city and began telling the people, “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done! Can this be the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)?” So the people left the city and were coming to Him.

They recognized that these men had been with Jesus.

To finish up this chapter in the book of Acts, verses 14-22 says, And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in reply. But after ordering them to step out of the Council [chamber], they began to confer among themselves, saying, “What are we to do with these men? For the fact that an extraordinary miracle has taken place through them is public knowledge and clearly evident to all the residents of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But to keep it from spreading further among the people and the nation, let us [sternly] warn them not to speak again to anyone in this name.”  So they sent for them, and commanded them not to speak [as His representatives] or teach at all in the name of Jesus [using Him as their authority]. But Peter and John replied to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you and obey you rather than God, you must judge [for yourselves]; for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard.”  When the rulers and Council members had threatened them further, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because [of their fear] of the people, for they were all praising and glorifying and honoring God for what had happened; for the man to whom this sign (attesting miracle) of healing had happened was more than forty years old.

A few take aways for me from these passages were: 1) John and Peter worked together. They had different personalities. They did not point to one another, they pointed to Christ. When you have someone come to you about the flaws of another, point them back to Christ. It hurts my heart when we use divisive words such as “they should not have said that” or “they should not have done that,” especially when you were not witness to it. Inadvertently we are pointing back to ourselves, we should be pointing back to Christ. 2) There was no denying they had been with Jesus. Although we do not have Jesus in His physical form here on earth, He did send the Holy Spirit. We can have a relationship with the Holy Spirit. Can people tell we have been with Him? Sign, wonders, miracles, healings and etc. will follow us when we walk in this relationship.

In 2020, when Covid-19 was causing everything to close, my heart yearned to see the miracles take place. Distractions happened. I lost focus. I let the disappointments of people get in the way. I tried my hardest to focus on His word, but still having hurt in my heart from the disappointments. It is not worth not walking in my calling. He has called us out! Do not fall into the trick of the enemy to get us distracted. Focus back on Christ and get a relationship with the Holy Spirit!