Daily Wisdom

 “… the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?” Jn 18:11

These words of Jesus were greater than the calming of seas and the raising of the dead. Prophets and the apostles could work wonderous miracles, but they could not always do and suffer the will of the Father! To do and suffer (sacrifice) in God’s will is till the highest form of faith, and sublime Christine achievement. To have a sympathizing/merciful God we must have a “suffering Savior.” One cannot do good unto others without a cost of sacrifice, that’s the price (the cup of which we drink from) we pay to do the will of the Father. If Paul had not had his thorn in the flesh we would've missed much of the Fathers mercy we see penned in his letters. 

He who would be a helper to God’s will, must first be a suffer to it… HSAY

Daily Wisdom

Zec 6:8 Then cried he upon me, and spake unto me, saying, Behold, these that go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country. 

The only thing which quiets the Spirit of the Lord towards us is our sin. In this vision the black horse denotes judgement, and the white horse deliverance. By the Lord executing judgments upon the Chaldeans, in brought about help, favor, and deliverance to His children, the Jews, which were faithful to the will of God, and well pleasing in his sight. Thus, signifying the quieting of the Lord’s anger against unrighteousness, and refreshing his Spirit.

Walk in the will of God, and you will find the work of God favorable in your life… HSAY

Daily Wisdom

Isa 29:16 “You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay…”

Man is not short on motivation to mold and manipulate their own affairs, thinking to make God’s providence give attention to our projects. The great work of redemption (Rom 3:24) is to set the world right side up; God above, man below.  It requires the potter to hold and mold the clay of man’s soul. Man is to be the malleable material (Rom 9:20-21 “hath not the potter power over the clay?)  Just because we’re molded with hands, don’t mistake yourself as the Potter!

If life is currently upside down, someone other than the Potter has been allowed to get their hands on the clay… HSAY

Daily Wisdom

“And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.  Isa 58:11

Even if life’s storms may come from the enemies wishes, they still must pass through God’s will. The question is what will you do with them? If the Lord allowed you to experience it then He has given you the strength to endure it! Not all storms come to disrupt your life, some come to clear obstruction in your life. Let Him who allowed the storm to sail the vessel.

Rise above the storm and you’ll find the sun is still shinning… HSAY

Daily Wisdom

Isa 38:1 “… Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die and not live.”

Do we truly want what God wants?

Interesting that Kind Hezekiah was more interested in the Lord’s temporal deliverance than he was His eternal deliverance.

Hezekiah just spent Ch. 37 praying for his kingdom and its deliverance from Assyria.

Which God faithfully delivered by defeating the Assyrians with His own hand.

Yet, when the Lord sent His message through Isaiah for Hezekiah to prepare his home, that the Lord was calling him home eternally Hezekiah wanted nothing to do with that deliverance.

One must be cautious in seeking their will over the Lord’s.

Point being: Hezekiah got what he asked for, but not what he wanted!

Meaning the kingdom, he once prayed for God’s protection over, ended with a leader who did more damage than an army could.

Hezekiah’s life turned to folly and foolishness with Babylon and he birthed the most wicked king Israel ever experienced in his own son Manasseh who ruined the nation (2 Kg 21).

Doing something for God (I have walked before thee in truth) does not entitle us to reimbursement from God (Lk 17:6-10).

Selfish giving always leads to selfish living, which is never a good thing (Pro 16:8)

Hezekiah wanted HIS will for his life more than he wanted God’s will, so God gave him what he wanted.

With selfishness, you’ll get what you want, but you won’t want what you get (II Sam 13:1-15).

Be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.

HSAY… Todd

Acts 18:21b “…if God will…”

As Paul prepares to leave Ephesus the Jews asked him to tarry longer. But Paul told them he must keep the Passover feast in Jerusalem.

However, Paul stated he would return, “if God will.”

Man can accomplish great things. He can build a great reputation amongst his peers. He can even change cultural vision and ways.

But if God’s not in it what’ to be gained from it?

In (gen 11:4) The tower of Babel had a great objective, but despite man’s greatest of effort they would’ve accomplished everything except what they started out to accomplish… find God!

God knows man’s heart, and when we succeed in the best of intentions, we’re prone to put our name right up there with God’s when we succeed without God being in it. (Eph 2:8-9)

One must wonder how many ministries or churches with good intentions fall into this trap. We might think that a big building with our name on it will give God the fame, but bigger isn’t always better in God’s eyes.

Throughout the Bible God used men who had little experience or leadership qualities and guided them to be the Godly men their situation required.

The truth is that we all struggle with the temptation to rely on our works, or those of our congregation, instead of relying on God.

Paul simplified the key to the success of his ministry in Jesus when he told the people in Ephesus, I will return, “if God will.”

Our life ministry will accomplish one of two things, “our fame” or “God’s name”

HSAY… Todd

Daily Wisdom

Jdg 17:5 “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”

It will matter little what we place in our life if we don’t place the Lord above our life. Micah and his house (and Israel) put their own desire and direction above the Lord’s (vs 6) “right in their own eyes.”)  Putting selfish desires above Godly direction, will often place you in a dysfunctional environment. God has a purpose, pray for patience to wait in it, wisdom to see it, and direction to follow it. The Lord cares not what your trade is, He’s more concerned about what tools you use to succeed in it. Relying on God’s direction verses one’s desires must begin anew every day as if nothing had yet been done.

Nothing lies beyond our reach except that which lies outside His will, rejection can be a clear sign of the wrong direction!

HSAY… Todd

Daily Wisdom

“Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.” Jn 20:19

The simplest way to say it: be where you should be and you don’t have to worry about what you might miss!  The disciples were gathered at the first of the week for worship, and there Christ appeared. Unfortunately, Thomas chose not to be there (vs 24) and he is labeled as doubting Thomas, due to his unbelief to Christ resurrection and appearance to other disciples. Due to Thomas not staying on a spiritual schedule he missed what would’ve eliminated his doubt.  The spiritual actions that betters you is the same process that blesses you. A wise man said, “you don’t know what you miss until you miss it.” Sometimes what is missed is of greater value than you can afford. We all have the same 24 hrs. to invest with, don’t miss the works of God because of your will for the world. 

Christ… don’t miss him for the world!

HSAY… Todd

Daily Wisdom

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” 1 Thess 5:18

Our willingness to wait reveals the value we place on the object we’re waiting on. In light of that, are we as eager to wait as patiently in God’s will as we are in pursuing ours? When pressure or suffering mounts in your life you come to realize you have one of two responses for your situation. You can react with an unwillingness to endure in your faith by responding in selfish actions that subdue or appease your will or you can hold to your faith in a willingness to risk everything on God’s will.  Willingness of faith is not about man getting his will done in heaven, but getting God’s will done in man. It’s not about overcoming reluctance, but laying hold of God’s will in your life. The willingness to deny self-will is the very spirit of Jesus, it’s the heart and soul of his Gospel. Waiting on God requires the willingness to bear human uncertainty, with faith in the certainty of his promises.

The effectiveness of God’s will in your life works by your willingness to relent to it.

HSAY… Todd

Daily Wisdom

“And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him…” 1 Sam 16:1

As a Christian you must learn to move in the Lord’s will or the Lord will move without you (Saul). Samuel had spent and invested a great amount of time and energy in Saul, to only have him step out of the Lord’s will causing God to move on to a young David as king. But, Samuel gets challenged by God, “how long wilt thou mourn, seeing I have rejected Saul?” God’s not blaming Samuel for mourning, but possibly Samuel’s affection and will for Saul caused him to indulge in it, yet it was in vain. Samuel, through God’s rejection of Saul, is challenged to acquiesce in God’s divine will. If God will be glorified in Saul’s squandered opportunity, Samuel ought to be satisfied. As much as you want to plan your life, it always has a way of surprising you, and in spite of how it appears God is still in control; stay in peace and more importantly stay in pace with God.  Those who stay devoted to God’s will over their desire will reach their destination in God. The Lord has you where you are for a time such as this (Esther 4:14), don’t get confused with who’s serving whose will.  You may not like the timing of God’s will, but you must have faith to trust in the transition.

The greatest hinderance of God’s work in your life comes from trying to serve God outside the will of God.

HSAY… Todd