Hope Deferred

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. -Proverbs 13:12

One of the many attributes of God is His deep desire to fulfill the many longings and deep desires we have in our hearts. Whether big or small, God gives us what we need, not necessarily what we want. Of course, not every desire we have I’d God,t, and not every expectation that we have will be fulfilled.

We can all point to situation, circumstances, and relationships I haven’t gone our way, that have felt unjust or unfair, as we deal with unfulfilled hopes and unmet expectations in our lives.

Many translations render the phrase “Hope deferred makes the heart sick” In the same way, with the same words. Defer means to put off to a later time or postpone. When we’re hoping for something, we don’t want to delay gratification, we want instant satisfaction. It is when we look at our situation for disappointment, that we become disillusioned and miss the bigger picture. God in His wisdom will often defer some of the things we hope for in our lives. This is so that He will teach us more about his eternal perspective

Being at peace and filled with Christ’s joy is where our Heavenly Father wants to take us. Not every desire in our hearts, and longing in our lives will bring us happiness we often expect. It is when God’s peace fills our hearts, that true joy will enter in as well.

As much as we want to move forward quickly, and find momentum efficiently, it is in the process of waiting that we discover Christ’s efficiency and develop our maturity. Our Hope deepens and our faith is strengthened. That is, if we can trust God’s timing and wait for His provision to come in our lives.

Perseverance is like a quiet bowing to God’s sovereign will. It’s a task that requires us to constantly look to God. To lean in and learn from Him as He cultivates character in our lives.

At any given moment, God may choose to do what we desire or something even greater. He might not meet at accusations, but He will always exceed them. Choose to keep praying for God‘s will in your life. He will release what you want to receive in due season. A harvest of blessings will eventually come our way if we don’t give up I didn’t even know that was there

Proverbs 13:12

How Do I Hear God’s Voice?

Have you ever found yourself thinking, “I wish God would talk with the way He spoke to His people in the Old Testament.”

Many times, scripture describes God is speaking to His people in the voice of an angel or in a dream. He even writes on the wall in one account (Daniel 5). So it’s natural we want to hear God’s voice or see a big sign that will help you feel confident in God’s direction.

We are experiencing confusing circumstances. Sometimes you may just want God to send you a text message and tell you what to do. Maybe you feel far from God I want Him to reach out to you and reassure that He is still there. Maybe you’ve heard people say the God of the Bible is personal, but you never have interacted with God before and wonder how to begin.

He is the same God today that He was in the time of the Old Testament. He still speaks to us today. He made it possible for each of us to have a personal relationship with Him, which involves talking together every day. He communicates with us.

Most of us have never learned how to recognize God’s voice, are we forgotten how we did it in the past.

So in a world full of noise and distraction, how does god speak to us?

Different Ways God Speaks In The Bible

God speaks audibly to His people.Here are some occasions when He spoke to people in the Bible in the voice that they literally heard.

  • He spoke to Samuel as child in the Temple (1 Samuel 3).
  • He spoke to Moses out of the burning bush and hold him to free his people from Egypt (Exodus 3).
  • He spoke to Elijah not through an earthquake or a great win but with the still small voice (1 Kings 19:11-12).

So God can enter speak with an audible voice, though that’s not how Christians hear from God and western cultures. Because God is the same today as He was then, we believe He still can and does speak audibly today.

Another way God speaks to His people is through miraculous events, Such as signs, dreams and visions.

Signs came in many forms in biblical times, from the parting of the Red Sea (Exodus 14) to the disciples finding a donkey when and where Jesus said they would (Matthew 21:2-7).

Dreams and visions are depicted from the beginning of the Bible to the end. The last book of the Bible, Revelation, tell us how John, One of Jesus‘s closest followers, receive the vision of heaven with streets of gold (Revelation 4). Dreams and visions communicate in one of two ways: with specific instructions Or with symbolism can be interpreted by the Spirit as a message to people.

Pursuing God Is Essential To Hearing God

God tells us very clearly in the Bible that the more we seek Him, The more we are going to experience His presence in our lives.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13

Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him Must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him

Hebrews 11:6

I love those who love Me, and those who seek me find Me.

Proverbs 8:17

The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there is anyone who understands, any who seek God.

Psalm 14:2

God never leaves us once we invite Him into our lives, But He does respond to our desire for more of Him.

So how do you demonstrate your desire for more of God? Pursue Him somehow every day.

Reading and studying in the Bible, spending time in prayer, and talking with other followers of Jesus are not just part of our to do list. God encourages us to do these things because they help us to learn about His character and learn to recognize His voice.

He uses our knowledge of who He is and what He has done to help with respond to situations we face.

Setting aside the distractions of every day life to focus on God it’s not just a physical or mental activity, it is a way of centering your heart on God and communicating that He has your complete attention. It’s similar to relationships with other people. If you sit down and listen to a loud one but you check your text messages every few seconds, they will not feel you are listening to them, and your life likely to hear everything they want to communicate.

How much more is it God deserve our complete attention?

You cannot expect to hear God’s voice if you do not regularly focus your attention on Him as for you as you can.

God Speaks To Us Through The Holy Spirit

In the Old Testament, remotely read about God speaking to his people from outside of themselves. But Jesus has promised the people who believe in Him something more.

On the night, Jesus was arrested before His crucifixion, He Spoke to His closest friends. He knew that He was going to return to His father in heaven soon. His friends, the disciples, spent several years walking and talking with Jesus every day. They never had to struggle to hear His voice in that sense.

Soon, Jesus would commission His friends to take the message of what He had done to the whole world. But He would not be physically present with them. They would need His guidance every day to make decisions about where to go and what to do next.

You just wanted them to be confident that they would have everything they needed, so He revealed to them the news that in the future, God will live within them in the person of the Holy Spirit. Yes, God would continue to be someone apart from them, but He was placing His actual presence Is that each person who believes in Jesus.

Jesus said:

I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when He, The Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from Me what He will make known to you.

John 16:12-15

The presence of the Holy Spirit in your life changes everything about hearing God’s voice. If you have chosen to begin a personal relationship with Jesus, His Spirit now lives within you. So rather than wondering where God is and how to connect with Him, Do you have complete confidence that He lives within you and is always ready to guide you

If you have not invited Jesus into your life yet, find out how do you know God personally.

God speaks to you through the Bible. In it, God tells you how to live the life He has called you to live. The Bible is full of accounts with lessons, and God speaking the truth, revealing what you need you hear to lead a life that blesses Him..

God also speaks through the internal promptings of the Holy Spirit. John 14:26 Says that the spirit teaches you and helps you to remember what God has done. The Holy Spirit prompt you to act in obedience, to turn away from simple things, and reach out to people around you for support.

Internal promptings can or you can share the message of Jesus with people in your life.

Find out more about the Holy Spirit and how you can experience more of God in your life.

God wants to make His voice known to you. He has no desire to confuse you. The combination of His Spirit within you and His living word, the Bible, in front of you is His plan Or teaching you to recognize His voice.

Why do many Christians live their lives wondering exactly what God is saying or whether He is still speaking at all?

The answer made by an understanding what distracts you from hearing God.

Are You A Chameleon Or A Zebra?

Are you the kind of person who blends in with the crowd, who changes persona to meet the needs of the situation? A social chameleon? Or, are you the type of person who displays a consistent personality regardless of the situation or with whom you are interacting? We’ll call that type of zebra, because the zebra doesn’t change the stripes.

I am talking about is a personality constructed of self monitoring. Self monitoring refers to the desire and ability to monitor one’s own social behavior in order to adapt to a particular situation or person(s) with which you are interacting. High self monitors are like social chameleons. They engage in higher levels of self perception and present different versions of themselves, depending on the situation. They blend in.

Low self monitors, on the other hand, are not focus on, nor a skilled in, self presentation and tend to behave consistently across different situation and groups. Like a Zebra, they don’t change their stripes. They are who they are. Also monitors tend to display their underlying personalities, attitudes, and typical behavior regardless of the situation.

Self-monitoring is a complex personality construct that includes attitudinal and motivational components. A high self monitor wants to fit in and be excepted, as well as a set of social skills like being able to read others emotions and nonverbal like cues; disability can alter or change one’s emotional expressions and behaviors.

A low self monitor, on the other hand, is more motivated to be consistent – just Langfeld attitudes and emotions – And may lack skills and polished self presentation.

Research has shown that high self monitors are more likely to get along with others, are more successful in social situation and are more likely to attain leadership positions, and have broader social networks. On the downside, high self monitors desire to fit in means that they are more likely to blindly follow the crowd, and because of their ever-changing nature, overtime others may feel that they are somewhat “phony” and that they don’t really know the high self monitoring person. With low self monitors what you see is what you get.

Once you understand the construct of self monitoring, it’s usually easy to know whether you are a high or low self monitor. Do you typically alter your behavior in an effort to fit in? And group discussions, you address your opinions to go along with the crowd? Do you often engage in social acting or role-playing? If so, you are as high self monitor? If you find yourself “just being yourself” in social situations, expressing your true feelings and opinions, even if they are inconsistent with your feelings and opinions of others, and you are most likely a low self monitor.

A Waste Of Life

I wonder when we stand before God if He will ask us about what we did with our time. We waste so much time everyday on cell phones, on social media, some people sit in front of the television all day when their not at work or playing video games.

On average teenagers spend eight to twelve hours a day on a cell phone and adults about 4 hours a day. It’s such a big waste of life in so many ways.

Someone once asked Billy Graham if he had any regrets in life. He said he wished he had spent more time praying, more time studying the Bible, and less time traveling and taking speaking engagements. He said that he wished he had spent ore time telling the Lord how much he loved him.

One day we will be held accountable for what we did with our time and perhaps even the opportunities we’ve missed.

When we are standing before God on judgement day. He will want to know what we did with our opportunities. Did we grasp them? Did we use the influence God gave us to reach out to people we know with the gospel? How did we use or resources? How did we spend our money?

These things all will be reviewed at judgement. But, this judgement won’t be about success as we like to define success. It will be about our faithfulness to the Lord.

For we must all be revealed before the judgement seat of Messiah; that each one may receive the things in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

2 Corinthians 5:10

We do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then it vanishes. James 4:14

Is God Judging America

If we consider the fact that God looks upon our nation like He does Israel, then is it possible that the blessings and judgements God places on Israel could apply to America?

Have you ever wondered why thing seems to be getting worse in Amy. Why crime is up, why things seem to be falling apart, why the weather is changing?

The answers to this questions are in the Bible.

The Old Testament is not a book for those that lived long ago, but is relevant to us today.

God told the nation of Israel that if they did not obey His law, love Him, and serve Him that He would pass judgement upon them. I believe that this hold true to America today.

We founded our country on the precepts of God and God holds us accountable for our actions.

If we fail to adhere to His word then judgement will come. God Will remover our cover of protection.

God will send judgement in 5 stages. These stages comes to a nation that turns away from God.

We can learn from the past or we can continue to make the same mistakes those in the past made.

The decision is ours.

We can make a difference and we can change the course the nation is traveling.

Stage 1

Loss of health, decline of agricultural prosperity, terror in combat, loss of our personal freedoms:

But, if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments, and if you reject my statutes, and if your souls abhors in my ordinances, so that you will not do all my commandments, but break my covenant, I also will do this to your; I will appoint terror over you, even consumption and fever, that shall consumer the eyes, and make the soul to pine away. You will sow your seed in vain, for your enemies will eat it. I will set my face against you, and you will be struck before your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you; and you will flee when no one pursues you.

Leviticus 26:14-17

Stage 2

Economic recession and depression, increased personal discipline:

If you in spite of these things will not listen to me, then I will chastise you seven times more your sky like iron, and your soul like bronze. You strength will be spend in vain; for your land won’t yield its increase, neither will the trees of the land yield its fruit.

Leviticus 26:18-20

If we disobey God and live in our sins, we shall receive punishment for our sins seven times over.

You see people have nervous breakdowns.

Suicides will increase.

Weather will be affected, crops will be affected.

All the efforts you put forth in your work will be in vain

No one will recognize your efforts.

All your hard work will yield no fruit.

Stage 3

Violence and breakdown of law and order, cities destroyed:

If even then you remain hostile toward me and refuse to obey, I will inflict you with seven more disasters (plagues) for your sins. I will release wild animals that will kill your children and destroy your cattle, so your numbers will dwindle and your roads will be deserted.

Leviticus 26:21-22

You will see more disasters than ever before.

More violent acts against one another.

An increase in animals killing our children.

Future population will begin to decline.

Stage 4

Military conquest, foreign occupation of the land, scarcity of food, break up of the family unit:

And if you fail to learn a lesson from this and continue your hostility toward me, then I myself will be hostile toward you, and I will personally strike you seven times over for your sins. I will send armies against you to carry out these covenant threats. If you flee to your cities, I will send a plague to destroy you there, and you will be conquered by your enemies. I will completely destroy your food supply, so the bread from one over will have to be stretched to feed ten families. They will ration your food by weight, and even if you have food to eat, you will not be satisfied.

Leviticus 26:21-26

If we continue in our sins, we will see these things come to pass.

Stage 5

Destruction of the nation

If after this you still refuse to listen and still remain hostile towards me, then I will give full vent to my hostility. I will punish you seven times over for your sins. You will eat the flesh of your one sons and daughters. I will destroy your pagan shrines and cut down your incense alters. I will leave your corpses piled up beside your lifeless idols, and I will despise you. I will make your cities desolate and destroy your places of worship, and I will take no pleasure in your offerings of incense. Yes, I myself will devastate your land. Your enemies will come to occupy it will be utterly shocked at the destruction they see. I will scatter you among the nation and attack you with my own weapons. Your land will become desolate, and your cities will lie in ruins. Then at last the land will make up for its misses Sabbath years as it lies desolate during your years in exile in the land of your enemies. Then the land will finally rest and enjoy its Sabbaths. As the land lies in ruins, it will take the rest you never allowed it to take every seventh year while you lived it. And for those of you who survive. I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies far away. You will live in such constant fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though chased by a warrior with a sword, and you will fall even when no one is pursuing you, you will stumble over each other in flight, as though fleeing in battle. You will have no power to stand before your enemies. You will die among the foreign nations and be devoured in the land of your enemies. Those still left alive will rot away in enemy lands because of their sins and the sins of their ancestors.

Leviticus 26:27-39

We need to repent and turn away from our wicked ways soon.

We need to cry out to God and ask for mercy.

We need to confess our sins.

We need God in America again.

W need God in our lives.

God always warns us in advance of everything He will do.

What Stage Do You Think We Are In Right Now!

Grace

Grace frees us from the dissatisfying claustrophobia of our individualism to enjoy the fulfilling freedom of loving and serving God.

Individualism is not freedom. Living for yourself is not liberty; it is a self-imposed prison. Doing what we want to do, when we want to do it, and how we want it has never been the good life; it never leads to anything good.

Making up our own rules and following our own paths leads to disaster. God calls us to Himself and commands us to follow Him so that, by grace, He May free us from ourselves. In calling us to obedience, God is not robbing us of Liberty, but is leading us to the only place where Liberty can be found.

To understand this, we must look at life from the vantage point of creation and the fall to sin. As the Creator, God designed us to live a dependent life. We were built for a life of loving, worshipful dependency and obedience. You and I do not have the power and wisdom we need to live the independent existence that modern society make us to believe. There is the law of the Universe that if we are not aligned with we will end up destroying ourselves. To try and live life completely independent to God is like trying to drive a beautiful boat down a Superhighway. The boat is a wonderful creation, which is loaded with amazing design details, but it was not built to run on pavement. If you try to run it on land, you will destroy the boat and go nowhere fast.

The entrance of sin into the world and into our hearts teaches us that we were not hardwired for independence. It complicates things. The fall made us all a danger to ourselves. Because of the sin in us, we think bad things, we desire bad things, we are attracted to bad things and we are blind too, to much of what is going on inside of ourselves. So not only need God’s presence and His wisdom to guide and protect us we also need His grace to rescue use.

The doctrine of creation and the fall into sin drives us to conclude that living for ourselves- that is working to independently rule our own little worlds will never work. Life is only ever found when we put ourselves in the hand of our Creator and cast ourselves on His amazing grace. An honest look at how we were put together by the Creator of the universe and what sin did to us destroys any confidence we have in our ability to make it on our own and drives us to the cross of the Lord.

It really is true that individualism is a delusion, that joyful submission is the good life and that Jesus alone is able to transport us from one to the other.

Grace Is The Only Power That Rescues Us From Us