Author: kdorway

Many Times Over

When I start the day with You, I am blessed to see you work miracles in timing and in extra strength which make up many times over the time spent in Bible reading and prayer first.

Meditation Thought: “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)

Aha. I see. No person having embraced the salvation of Jesus, having committed their whole life to God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Comforter – can continue to rush into their duties in the world before meeting with their Guide, their Helper, their Companion: for otherwise they will not be fit for the kingdom [nor fit in the Kingdom, not being suited for it] – but will be fit for the world.

When I start the day with You, I am blessed to see you work miracles in timing and in extra strength which make up many times over the time spent in Bible reading and prayer first.

Always Gain, Never Loss

Our relationship must grow so that our time together is not even ‘second nature’ to you – but first nature.

Meditation Thought: “Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom for the future.” (Proverbs 19:20)

“Take one step at a time: the crux is to take that step in the right direction. It will be easier for you if you decide each moment as if it were just one step. You know what direction one step should be to reach the goal already planned. Do not change goals on impulse, for you only go further away from My goal for you, and then I must turn you around to retrace your mistaken steps, and you have lost time which can never be replaced. Think of the time with Me as recharging your batteries. If you go on and on, you will lose power and be stopped completely even though it appeared you were gaining time by going on the your tasks.

Your time with Me will give you:
– assurance of going in the proper direction
– extra power
– extra wisdom in choices
– extra confidence
– extra peace
– extra joy.

Time with Me – devotion to Me – is always gain, never loss. It is when you are most harried, most pressed for time, that you need time with Me the most urgently. You know this now enough to do it frequently – but it is still a conflict for you – our relationship must grow so that our time together is not even ‘second nature’ to you – but first nature. Rely on Me, obey Me moment by moment with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength”

An Immunizing Agent

…the very sort of the life that every human searches for, longs for, is even desperate for.

Meditation Thought: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful …and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

Similar to Ephesians 6:17 “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God”. A sword, when wielded expertly and by a person quickly discerning where to thrust it, causes an immediate change in the place it enters. So the Word of God can cause an immediate, complete change wherever it is thrust. Evil is immobilized and God’s spirit for good is free to move in the situation. We must learn to enable God to thrust this sword into any evil in our lives by becoming immersed in His Word, keeping the sword available at all times. And the Word in us serves as an immunizing agent against evil thoughts and evil intentions getting a hold in us. We must be diligent in keeping a large dose of our immunizing agent in ourselves at all times, lest the disease of evil get a foothold in our minds and hearts and bodies.

The Word of God is able to penetrate into our subconscious whereas we can only deal with the conscious. We swallow the Word of God, trusting it to do its work, but not really understanding how it penetrates and works in us. We don’t understand the ‘how’ – but we can see the results of ingesting it as our lives are changed completely by it – healthier in every area (body, mind, spirit) – and happier, more alive and enthused and excited: the very sort of the life that every human searches for, longs for, is even desperate for.

A Superior Toolbox

The more words of God we know, the more we learn of God.

Meditation Thought: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

Even human words have great effect. The course of history can be changed by only a word: ‘love’ or ‘hate’; ‘go’ or ‘come’. But God’s words have power far beyond human power and we do well to stand in awe of them and to heed them.

The more words of God we know, the more we learn of God – and the more we know of God, the more we know of everything. As we come to know God, we come to realize that He can be trusted: that when He allows something into our lives, it is for a purpose. We don’t always look at it as an opportunity, however, and therefore it becomes a burden rather than the blessing that was available if we had been the proper catalyst to change it into one.

When we are causing action, if it is God’s energy and direction working through us, that action is going to rearrange the situation into good. We need to look carefully to be sure that we reach for the tools that God is handing down, and do not use tools coming from another source.

We know God’s tools are consistent with scripture, and consistent with the personality of Jesus, and will be visible in prayer. They may be in any shape or in any form, but handed to us in love, in gentleness and not forced – for God wants us to use His tools, but He also wants us to want to use them. And when we do – wow – they are so superior to other tools we have used that we become eager to continue to use them. If we choose carefully and alertly, we will be able to discern which tools are truly God’s tools.

Rendering Joy

We are assured by Jesus’ own words that when we help others it is the same as helping Him.

Meditation Thought: “What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me?” (Psalm 116:12)

When we are able to dispense goodness to others, our children, for example, what pleases us in return? Grateful hearts, loving actions, and happy countenances. Since we are made in God’s image, it would be logical to assume these please God also.

Our grateful hearts can be expressed in terms of praise, of time spent with the Lord in study of His Word, and in prayer. Our loving actions can be expressed to those around us, for we are assured by Jesus’ own words that when we help others it is the same as helping Him. Surely God is pleased when we smile and are enthused and in every way possible exude a joyful attitude because of the works He is doing in our lives.

As we learn to praise Him in every circumstance, knowing this action is pleasing to Him and beneficial to us, both immediately in terms of relieving stress, and later in God’s working freely in the circumstances, we do have the pleasure of joy in Him, and not a dependency of feeling on circumstances. Joy in Him must be what He wants us to render to Him for His goodness towards us. The scriptures point to this, and our human experiences point to this.

Stride Confidently

Quit cleaning out the unwanted filth with your old human-struggle broom and start using the power vacuum of My guidance and My strength.

Meditation Thought: “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.” (Psalm 113:3)

“Praise, joy, bubbling excitement crowd out gloom and despair which Satan would put in your life. You have all the equipment you need to command a fulfilling, happy life – use it.

You can stride confidently, not slink along downheartedly, for whatever you need is at your side no matter what situation you are led into. When you come to an obstacle, look at it and then choose the equipment you need to overcome it. If you are abiding in Me and I in you, the choice will be appropriate and effective in overcoming, and in leaving all kinds of good in your path. Become competent in using your equipment and take good care of it. You become competent by the practice with it and it stays shiny by continuous use.

Picture yourself striding along with a purpose (Our purpose) before you, but stopping to help anyone you meet, knowing that this is right and good and will not be a deterrent to moving on to fulfill our purpose. Look eagerly to each task, knowing it will be transformed into something special just by the fact that it is the one I have chosen for you to do. The closer you get to the dreaded tasks, the more you will realize that you could not see them clearly from a distance, and that the fear was based on an illusion of how they appeared before the time to deal with them. Once you are right at them, you have My perspective and My help to dispose of them with ease and with confidence.

Cast off your timidity with knowledge. When you know where power is and how to use it, you no longer need to behave as if you are ignorant of it. Quit cleaning out the unwanted filth with your old human-struggle broom and start using the power vacuum of My guidance and My strength. You will accomplish more with less effort and do a better job”

Suggested Prayer: “Lord, I ask that You form my thoughts into flowing rivers of praise which will wash all filth of rebellion and irritability away, and leave every area of my life sparkling and clear and a tribute to You changing my life. Amen.”

Nourishment to Thrive

Prepare yourself for peak perfection.

Meditation Thought: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18)

As a plant thrives and blooms in response to the nourishment provided, so you will thrive and bloom on the nourishment of the knowledge of your Lord. His strength will flow into you, being absorbed and used in whatever way is best for you to become at the peak of perfection in being a child of God.

Prepare yourself to absorb this knowledge, and drink it thirstily, knowing that this nourishment will change you for the better, both for your sake and for the sake of others to enjoy you more fully.

The Golden Rule Demonstrated

A bit of envy is exchanged for a bit of understanding, a bit of selfishness is exchanged for a bit of outreach, a bit of hate for…

Meditation Thought: “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6:31)

If you are, through Christ, doing good to everyone in your life, you are a tree producing good fruit. Subtly, little by little:
a bit of envy is exchanged for a bit of understanding,
a bit of selfishness is exchanged for a bit of outreach,
a bit of hate for a bit of love,
a bit of despair for a bit of hope,
a bit of judgment for a bit of forgiveness,
a bit of rebellion for a bit of righteousness,
a bit of ignorance for the revelation of Truth.

The miracle is that, through Christ, the exchange for the more desirable condition takes place simultaneously in you and in the person upon whom your attitude, concentration and resources are working.

Christ said “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” – but He said it only after He had become an example, only after He had embraced this concept to the point of sacrificing himself to the total commitment of His life to this principle.

Jolted

We do not understand His willingness to forgive and His desire to express mercy.

Meditation Thought: “and wen he saw their faith, he said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven you’ …and he rose… and went home glorifying God.” (Luke 5:20,25)

Believe – demonstrate your belief – and He whose word is true cannot deny or resist you, for He is true to His promises and true in His love.

We miss out on much healing and many blessings due to our inability to truly comprehend the depth of God’s love and the power of His Word and His Spirit. We do not understand His willingness to forgive and His desire to express mercy.

We make the mistake of attributing to God our own thoughts and feelings and manner of behavior.

Instead of seeking to become totally familiar with all that God is and patterning ourselves according to what we find, we lazily presume that the way we are must be an approximation of the way He is.

Only when we are jolted out of our long-held misconceptions can we have the revelation of the possibilities of a miracle taking place. Only when we believe enough in the possibility do we decide to seek to bring it about by requesting it in so much faith that it will take place that our Lord is so delighted with our confidence in His ability and desire to perform the miracle, can He match up our faith and His power to grant the request.

Ineptness to Effectiveness

To heed the advice of the word given to us by trusting in faith instead of relying on previous experience which has failed us is to change the pattern of our lives from…

Meditation Thought: ” ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’ …For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken … and they left everything and followed him.” (Luke 5: 5,9,11)

The difference between an empty net and a full net is ‘going it alone’ or doing it with Christ, which is automatically doing it according to the will of the Father and by the power of the Holy Spirit.

To heed the advice of the word given to us by trusting in faith instead of relying on previous experience which has failed us is to change the pattern of our lives from:
emptiness to fullness
weakness to strength
fear to courage
ineptness to effectiveness
dullness to excitement
joy in receiving to joy in giving
from our accomplishments being measured mathematically to geometrically.

%d bloggers like this: