Complete Deliverance

Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."
Matthew 17:19-21


Observation:
The disciples were frustrated at their inefficiency in healing the boy. They were curious to know why they couldn’t bring complete deliverance to him and asked Jesus about it. The Lord’s response was brutally honest, “because of the littleness of your faith.” Then Jesus was certain to affirm that if we have faith we will be able to do the impossible. And to the issue of faith, Jesus added the need to fast and pray.
The Lord Jesus is able to perform all kinds of miracles, but he also suggests that we can do it too. There is no reason for the enemy to have a hold in our lives and in those around us. Maybe what the Lord is implying in this passage is that the best way to grow our faith is by praying and fasting.

Application:
Prayer combined with fasting is one of the many spiritual disciplines that will help us to increase in our faith. The more we pray and fast, our entire being mind, soul and body becomes less dependent in our own abilities and strength and more dependent in God’s power. It makes sense that we practice these two disciplines in a combined effort if we want to se an increase in our faith. We know it, but we don’t do it often.
We all know that regular exercise combined with a balanced diet will increase our health. Nobody denies those facts. But very few people put them into practice. The same is with fasting and prayer. Nobody denies the fact they are beneficial for our spiritual health but very few practice them in a regular basis. Many of us do not need to be convinced of their value, but motivated to put them into consistent practice. If we want to see our faith increasing and the miraculous happening more often, we must pray and fast.
In my personal life I encounter the same struggles and sinful influence in my life. I tried my best in being completely delivered from the same issues. I get frustrated every time I hit the same wall over and over again. I have asked God why I cannot overcome that situation. I must recognize that I have little faith to see the power of God bringing complete deliverance in my life. And the reason why I have little faith is because my spiritual lifestyle is not enhanced with prayer and fast. I starve my spirit when I do not pray and fast. I must recalibrate my daily, weakly and monthly regimen to make prayer and fast a common practice in my life.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for knowing what will increase my faith and for not practicing it. You do not want hearers but doers of the word. Please make me a doer when it comes to prayer and fasting. Do not let me keep going without recalibrating my regimen. Please grant me diligence and passion to seek your face in such a way that my spirit is strengthened by the way I starve the flesh. Help me to love you to the point of sacrificing time and food in order to increase my spiritual faith. I don’t want to keep the enemy possessing what belongs to your kingdom. You alone are my Lord. Help me to bring all the areas in my life under your submission. AMEN!

Constant Inquiring

Then David inquired of the LORD, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You give them into my hand?" And the LORD said to David, "Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand…"
Now the Philistines came up once again and spread themselves out in the valley of Rephaim. When David inquired of the LORD, He said, "You shall not go directly up; circle around behind them and come at them in front of the balsam trees.
2 Samuel 5:19,22,23


Observation:
David depended in God. He truly inquired from the Lord even in times when it seemed that inquiring wasn’t necessary. He wasn’t afraid to bother God with his requests. He was more afraid to lead without the counsel of the Lord. In this situation David asked God for direction about fighting the Philistines. The Lord instructed him to go and fight. David obeyed and he became victorious. Then the Philistines came again and instead of jumping all over them based in the first instruction, David went back to God and asked Him for fresh direction. If David wouldn’t do that, he would have lost the battle. In the second occasion God gave him specific instructions and deeper understanding of how to defeat the enemy. Only those who depend deeply in the Lord and seek His face faithfully will be greatly enlighten about their daily affairs.

Application:
I wonder how many times we move on according to God’s instructions into success and then rest in our laurels. Very often we are content with basic wisdom for our lives and forsake the deep understanding that will greatly bless our lives and others. We are happy to get C’s in our relationship with God and we don’t pursue diligently the A’s. We can get a good quality of life by getting C’s but we will miss God’s very best for us. Our diligence in inquiring God is threatened by several issues: laziness, self-reliance, and sometimes a lame attitude about not bothering The Lord. In order to depend on God we must defeat all these issues and walk towards His very best instructions for the specific areas in our lives.
Lately the Lord has been whispering in my heart about going deeper and depending more in Him. I know what to do, but I need the strength to do what I know I must do. I need to seek diligently the times of prayer and intimacy with God in which I can be not only instructed but also loved and transformed by His lovingkindness and grace. My life and ministry depends on this. The eternal future of others depends on this. I don’t want to be in the ministry on my own. I need the Spirit of God at all times for all things.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for my procrastination and lack of focus in my dependence in you. I need you in every single breath, decision, thought, action, and word. Thank you so much for the instructions and help me to make them a reality in my daily life. Help me to pursue your very best in my life with diligence and discipline. Cause my leadership and competence to increase. Let me be a leader that seeks your face and that bothers your heavenly court with questions, doubts, and requests. I love you Lord. AMEN!

Following the King’s Muse

And David had a craving and said, “Oh that someone would give me water from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!” So the three broke through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water form the well of Bethlehem which was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David; nevertheless David would not drink it, but poured out to the Lord.
1 Chronicles 11:17-18


Observation:
David’s staff was very impressive. There were mighty men of valor capable to kill hundreds. He had a group of thirty men that surrounded him closely and that helped him to win all his battles. There was a more intimate group of three. They were David’s closest associates. They were in such position of honor because their higher level of loyalty for the king. This passage reveals how the three had a stronger sense of obedience and maturity in their service to the king. They need neither the king’s suggestions nor his specific commands in order to obey him. Everybody else was able to do that. The three responded to the king’s muses.


Application:
Leaders normally use three levels of instruction in order to provide direction. The first is the level of commands. Good leaders are able to command and mobilize immediately their loyal followers. At these level leaders exercise the highest level of authority and provide lots of supervision. A subordinate that is incapable to obey commands demonstrates the poorest level of loyalty and maturity. These kinds of people are usually the first to give up because they get stuck in the most basic training grounds. They don’t have initiative. They are stubborn and not teachable. Usually they are the first candidates to get rid off, depending of the gracefulness of their leader.
However, when people obey commands in a regular basis, then they graduate to the second level of instructions, which is the level of suggestions. At this level the leaders don’t have to exercise full authority and the supervision decreases because the subordinates have a good record of obedience and loyalty. The leader doesn’t have to give commands but suggestions in order to provide direction. Subordinates take those suggestions and value them very highly, responding to them with competence and effectiveness.
The three men in this passage responded to the highest level of instruction, which is obedience to their leader’s muses. At this level subordinates exercise the highest degree of loyalty and commitment. There is no supervision from the leader because he trusts completely in them. The relationship between leader and follower is at its highest level here. People who respond not only to commands and suggestions, but to the muses of their leader are the most valuable servants to their leaders. They are also the closest to their leader’s heart.
As I follow my leaders I wonder where am I? Am I a good follower of commands? Am I good following suggestions? Do I know what my leaders are musing about? This is critical in order to be a good servant and follower. But most important than anything, these principles of submission and loyalty must be applied to our relationship with God. Following the Lord’s commands is only the beginning of maturity. As we get closer to God by obeying consistently his clear instructions we will start hearing His suggestions for our daily living. At this level we don’t struggle between what is right and wrong but between what is good and best. We will be able to decipher messages of instruction and guidance for specific areas in our lives. As we build consistency and obedience in this level we will come closer to the heart of God and will be able to hear His muse. I truly believe that that’s the place where God wants us to be as we grow in Him.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you for revealing such a wonderful principle of obedience and submission. Please make me a faithful follower of your commands to the point of being very loyal in hearing and obeying your suggestions for my life. Let me grow in wisdom in my practical affairs. But more than anything, help me to be loyal to you to the point of listening to the muses of your heart. Give me the courage and determination to be in such a place in my relationship with you. I love you Lord. AMEN!

Learning to Rest

Come to Me, all you who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you, and learn form Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.
Matthew 11:28-30


Observation:
Times of rest and re-creation are indispensable in our lives. Our daily routines are charged with difficult decisions, trials, pressures, responsibilities, disappointments, victories, and many more. Our design set by our Creator requires a time when all these experiences, both good and bad, settle down and cool off. People in the world understand this principle very well. Rest is necessary in our society, and our schedule and calendar have been set in order to rest. But usually our time to rest becomes something else. Many people find themselves using the time of rest to catch up, or to have a second job. Others protect that time to rest by lying down in a couch and vegetate at least for a day. Both extremes are wrong. We really need to learn to rest the way wants us to. Rest is not about leisure or laziness. It’s about coming to Jesus to lay down our burdens.
The times of rest should be to find a special time of intimacy with Jesus. At these times we should be able to trade the weight of all the ups and downs in our life for the load of the Lord. We cannot do this by sleeping all day, or by watching TV, or by staying away from God. Rest without coming to Jesus is not rest at all.


Application:
Usually on my day off there’s a lot of stuff to be done. Family and personal errands, fix one thing here and there, make some phone calls, etc. All these things are not bad necessarily, but if not careful, they will take away the precious opportunity that I have during that day to come to Jesus and find rest in Him. The load I carry during the week is heavy and usually slows me down if is not traded for the load of the Lord. We must do it that way because we usually load ourselves with things that God is not asking us to do. But as we come and rest in Him, the Lord will reload our lives with the things He wants us to carry on, and He also gives us the strength, the wisdom, and the resources to do it well. In this way, the Lord provides us with renewed energy and increased effectiveness to live according to His will.
As I evaluate the way I rest, I must make serious improvements in my daily regimen. I must learn how to keep my Sabbath holy, listening to God, allowing Him to direct my life, and trading my heavy load for His load. During this season of major change, my regimen and consistency has been affected. I need to find my way to a relevant and effective regimen that will honor what God requires from me and that allows me in a weekly basis to unload my burdens and load myself again with the strength of the Lord. I depend on God for all my daily affairs and I need His wisdom. As I rest the way He wants me to, the Lord will truly rule my life and take my from glory to glory into his likeness.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for not being disciplined in my way to rest. Please grant me a desire to be at your feet and to seek you while I’m resting. Let me experience your presence and strength in my entire being, soul, mind, and body. I cannot deal the challenges I face daily on my own. I need not only your input, but also your anointing to execute your ways in my daily affairs. Please help me to be diligent in setting my times of rest in such a way that I trade my load for yours. Let me find rest in you. You are my rest and in you I always find the source of everything I don’t have. I love you Lord. AMEN!

Consecration Brings God’s Protection

May my prayer by counted as incense before Thee;
The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.
Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth;
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
To practice deeds of wickedness
With men who do iniquity;
And do not let me eat of their delicacies.
Psalm 141:2-4


Observation:
This psalm was an evening prayer for sanctification and protection. David found an important relationship between consecration and protection. The more sanctified, the more protected by God. He knew that the Angel of the Lord camps around those who fear Him. Therefore he was very intentional in praying for his consecration. David consecrated his words, the desires of his heart (thoughts), and his actions. He asked with sincerity in his heart that God would take his prayer as a pleasing request. He knew that a simple prayer of consecration was the beginning. He needed God’s intervention in his life in order to keep his words wholesome, his thoughts pure, and his actions righteous. He even prays that God will stop him from eating the delicacies of iniquity. Evil things taste good, like delicacies. But they have an ingredient of death and separation from God hidden in its flavor. They are sweet to the mouth but deadly to the entire body.
The result of consecration in David’s life was protection. The Lord guarded him from himself (his own sinful nature), from powerful enemies, and from the normal tear and wear of life. David knew that a sanctified person is a protected person. And that process starts with diligent and consistent prayers of consecration in our daily regimen.


Application:
The prayer of our consecration is an important discipline in our daily lives. It’s true that we must pray for other people’s needs but if there is a request for ourselves, that should be our sanctification. Every day we must dedicate our words, our thoughts, and our actions to the glory of God. We need to consecrate those who we love and serve. Many times we pray for their protection instead of their sanctification, but in order to be truly protected by the Angel of the Lord, we must pray that we will be people that fear Him and that walk consecrated to Him.
Lately the Lord has been reminding me about some of the disciplines I must return to. This is a very important one. I need to go back to the practice of going to my knees as soon as I get up and to consecrate my life, my family and my church in prayer. If I want to be protected from my own sin, and from the work of the enemy in my own life, then I need to consecrate myself in prayer and to walk consecrated the rest of the day. It makes a difference in our daily routine when we have prayed over our words, thoughts, and deeds. God truly hears this kind of prayers and help us through the Holy Spirit to say the right things, to have pure thoughts, and to do the wisest things. This is the best way to live under the shadow of His wings and secure in His protection. He is our refuge when we dedicate our entire life to Him.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for neglecting my daily prayers of consecration for my family, my church, and me. Help me to go back to the godly regimen in order to seek your protection. Please grant me a desire to consecrate everything around me and to dedicate it to your service. My words are for you to speak to others, my thoughts are for you to advance your kingdom, and my actions are for you to show your love to others. I dedicate every single endeavor of our church to your purpose in our community. Please help us to be the church you want us to be and that will effectively bring people closer to God. Remind me every morning as soon as I get up to go on me knees immediately, first thing in the day, to consecrate everything to you. Please protect me from my sinful nature, from the work of the enemy, and from those who seek my destruction. You are my refuge. I love you Lord more than life. AMEN!

Thirsty

O God, Thou art my God; I shall seek Thee earnestly;
My soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns for Thee,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Thus I have beheld Thee in the sanctuary,
To see Thy power and Thy glory.
Psalm 63:1-2


Observation:
David experienced the extreme conditions of the desert. While in exile, he had to be subject to the precarious lifestyle of the wilderness. He and his companions suffered lack of food and water to the point of going and ask charity from others like Nabal in 1 Samuel 25. For David, the struggle for water had parallels in his desire for intimacy with God.
The diligence required to survive in the wilderness demanded constant searching for water, especially early in the morning before the sun got stronger. Desperation and frustration increased when their search was unfortunate, but joy and satisfaction arrived when they found something to drink. The same diligence is required for those who seek closeness with God. Their desire to survive in this world has to be so intense that it will cause them to do whatever it takes to find the source of water for their soul. Diligence was not an option but a non-negotiable in order to make it through the season. David knew deep in his heart that seeking God was the priority above literal water. He felt the weakness of his soul and the depravation of his spirit when away from God’s presence. He was diligent to seek God and to depend in His nourishment in order to make it through the day. Fasting in the body couldn’t compare with the fasting from God’s presence.


Application:
We cannot take breaks from God, or even worse, go through the scorching sun of daily routine without the provision He has prepared for our soul. David knew very well that physical starvation would not affect his relationship with God the way busyness, laziness, or indifference would. Demoting intimacy with God to a minor priority would result not only in spiritual weakness, but also in relational distance with God. David lived for God and couldn’t be away from Him. The same way should be for me. I have to seek him diligently by defeating my own emotions (when I feel that my devotion is neither deep nor fruitful), my own physical limitations (when I’m tired and drained), and my busy schedule (when I have too much stuff to do).
Besides doing daily devotions, there is plethora of spiritual disciplines that keep me diligent in my search for God’s presence. Lately I’ve been neglecting and ignoring some of these disciplines and I must go back fully devoted to them. I cannot allow my soul become dry. There are hundreds of people depending on my spiritual condition. They are distressed and downcast like sheep without shepherd. My compassion for them and my service must be a result of having my spirit soaked with the presence of God. This is the best way I can love them.
Today the Lord is calling me back to intensify my disciplines or prayer, fasting, solitude, and silence. I need to keep my prophetic edge sharp and ready to bless others. I cannot bring people closer to God if I’m not closer to Him.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for neglecting some spiritual disciplines and for demoting my intimacy with you to give room to my own desire and schedule. I cannot live without you. I cannot serve you away from you. I’m not designed to love people without your love. I need you more than I need water, or bread, or affection, or recognition, or security, or welfare. Please arise my passion for you and bring me closer to your heart so I can bring others closer to you. AMEN!

Receiving what is Good

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!.
Matthew 7:11


Observation:
Jesus boldly declares that God is good and willing to do well in our lives. He is the best Father and He will always provide the very best for those who are His children. This passage comes between a request and a warning. First, the request is summarized in verses 7 and 8. Jesus reminds us to ask, seek and knock in order to receive, find, and open. These results do not come by default. They are the product of a consistent, spirit minded prayer life. Second, the warning is evident in the verses that follow. Jesus is very clear revealing that fruitfulness is the proof of our relationship with God. Without such fruit, there is no relationship with God.
Here Jesus discloses how to receive the good gifts from the Lord. We must ask, seek and knock for the good things of God. This is more than asking for a better job, or for a spouse, or for a raise, or for a bigger house and a nicer car. These requests are centered in the will of God for our character to become fruitful. When we pray for our spiritual fruit to come forth, we can be assured that God is fully committed to respond to those prayers because He is a good Father that gives what is good to those who ask Him. If we don’t receive what is good, is because we either ask for the wrong things, or we don’t ask at all.


Application:
One of the statements I hear the most against the existence of God is that “if God is real and good, why we allows the world to suffer?” They argument is based in the concept that if the world is in chaos therefore God is either unable to fix it, or completely disinterested in it, or unreal. Those who ascribe to such statements relate the condition of the world as a reflection of what happens in the personal lives. They suffer and prayers do not take the pain away. If God hears, then he doesn’t care because He does not fix what is wrong.
Even among believers there is a mistaken view about the way God answers our prayers. We pray for good things but they don’t happen. We quickly assume that the reason for denial is either our lack of faith, or hidden sin somewhere. The light of Jesus comes into this common situation revealing that even if God doesn’t give me what I want for me, God will continue being the best Father. When we pray in such a way that we seek the kingdom of God in our hearts and the evident fruit of our relationship with Him, God always hears that prayer and He is always ready to give good gifts to us, His children. Our problem is that we are either impatient to trust the best timing to receive the gift, or that we do not ask, seek, and knock the way God wants us to.
There are some areas in my life where the fruit of the spirit is not evident. I’ve prayed for strength in times of weakness and for self-control in times of lust. These are good prayers according to the will of God, but for some reason I fell and hit the ground hard, as if God didn’t care. Is at this times that we need to trust in the goodness of God. I must change my mind and be completely sure that God has given my the good gifts I request and that if I fail is not because God’s lack of attention, but because my sinful nature. I cannot give up in my prayers for the spiritual growth and maturity of my soul and of those who are under my care. I must continue asking, seeking, and knocking until I find the good gifts that God has reserved for me.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please increase my awareness of praying according to your will. Please help me to trust more in your goodness and to be more consistent in my prayer life. Grant me the desires of my heart that relate with fruitfulness in character. Please let your Holy Spirit take control over my mind and my heart when it comes to the issues I struggle often and that destroy the fruit of my relationship with You. Please give me more victories in the areas of weakness. Let your my love for you become evident by the way I live for you. Don’t let me be slaved to sin and give me the freedom and determination to do your will above anything else. Today I receive all the good that you have for me. AMEN!

Hindered By the Same Test

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil…
then the devil left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.
Matthew 4:1,11


Observation:
The moment was familiar for Jesus as he felt how He was being led in to a place of temptation. He went trough the same tests many times before, and He was going to go be in the same situation in the future. His dependence in God’s word and His obedience to it helped Him to pass any test. Interestingly the angels didn’t come to His aid until the test was over. Sometimes we want God’s intervention to either cancel the test or assist us while in the test. But Jesus knew that the victory over each tempting moment was preparing His heart for the greatest tests of all. He wasn’t going to be hindered in any occasion to fulfill His goal to go to the cross. He was waiting for God’s promotion that comes after every successful test.
This particular tempting moment occurred in the beginning of the Lord’s ministry on earth. He passed the tests of self-control, pride, and devotion to God, all very necessary to fulfill His mission from this moment until the moment of His death in Calvary. It’s like when in video games you need to pass the tests of the first level in order to be a good player in the second level, and so on until you beat up the game. Tests are not meant to destruct us but to train us in obedience and in the character traits necessary to accomplish God’s calling in our lives.


Application:
There are all kinds of tests that the Lord will guides us into in order to train us and teach us how to develop our new nature as children of God. Many tests will be easier according to our strengths. Many other will be difficult because press the buttons of our weakness. These particular tests frustrate us because over and over again we hit the wall in the same situation. We become discouraged and beat up ourselves for our stupidity. These failed tests will send us back to the training grounds in the same level we have been for a while and will hinder us to move to the next level of responsibility and growth. Is this fare? Well, I guess it is. I know that God is faithful to test me in such a way that I can win. If I fail the test is not because the test is too hard, but because I did not use the correct strategy, steps, and attitude. He loves me so much that he will never put me in a level where the tests are going to be unbearable. He will always take me into places to set me up for success, not for failure.
But still, when the fail the tests the first thing that comes to mind is that we are not able to pass the test. That’s a lie whispered by the devil and echoed by our own flesh. We cannot allow the devil, who is the tempter, to hinder our growth and maturity by making us complaisant and comfortable with the tests we fail often. We must stand up, learn again the lessons that we applied poorly, and when the Lord guides again to the test, think, talk, and behave the way God has been preparing us to pass the test. The Holy Spirit is a good teacher. He will never test us in a subject He hasn’t taught us before. And if we forget the lesson and fail the test again, we have to repent and prepare again to pass the same test sometime in the future. Even if it takes us several years to pass the same test that hinder us, we must have the attitude of a winner. We are more than conquerors in the name of the Lord.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for failing the same tests over and over again. More than anything, forgive me for reasoning my defeat with lame excuses and complacency. I truly want to pass this test that always pushes me back to start things all over again. Please help me to learn the lessons again, but this time help me to put into practice the strategy that will take me to pass the test and graduate to the next level of growth and maturity. Thank you so much for your patience, lovingkindness, and mercy over my life. Please let me be a conqueror in these areas of struggle. Wash my sin completely and let me be more like you. I love you Jesus. AMEN!

Resolving Conflict

But when David's oldest brother, Eliab, heard David talking to the men, he was angry. "What are you doing around here anyway?" he demanded. "What about those few sheep you're supposed to be taking care of? I know about your pride and dishonesty. You just want to see the battle!" "What have I done now?" David replied. "I was only asking a question!" He walked over to some others and asked them the same thing and received the same answer.
1 Samuel 17:28-30


Observation:
David’s older brother, Eliab, was angry when listening to David’s comments about the challenge of Goliath. In his anger Eliab accused David of being motivated by pride and dishonesty. David’s response was defensive but very wise. He was careful in picking his battles carefully. He wasn’t going to spend energy arguing with his brother—his fight was going to be against a giant enemy. He walked away from conflict with his brother and run into the right battlefield. However David was firm with Eliab. Walking away before he said something to his brother was the wisest thing David could do at that moment.


Application:
We are not told what was Eliab’s motivation to accuse David. He was possibly insecure and threatened by David’s comments about Goliath. As the firstborn, he could be envious of David’s courageous words and wished to be the one who had that attitude. The younger brother was acting as the older brother. Perhaps he was annoyed by the way God always favored David. Whatever was motivating Eliab for the accusations, it caused a tense situation between the two brothers. Eliab wants to display his courage by picking a fight with his younger brother, but David displayed real courage when picking a battle with a giant.
Many brothers and sisters intentionally or unintentionally will try to pick up fights with me. My tendency is to fight back and defend myself when accusations are thrown at me. It’s important to remain firm but to quickly walk away and spent energy in the real conflicts that require all my mind and energy. Whatever motivation causes them to argue with me, weather is envy, or hurt, or revenge, or simply poor people skills, I must see the greater fight at all times. I need to learn how to pick my battles wisely without compromising my integrity or reputation. Walking away from an unnecessary conflict is one of the wisest yet hardest habits to learn. But it brings us to the right battlefields to face the right opponents. Many people do not experience victory and promotion because they are busy fighting in the wrong battlefields. I must have my eyes wide open to identify the real enemy and walk away from the situations and conversations that have volatile elements that will distract me from the real battle. Satan loves when God’s people start shooting at each other instead of using the ammunition against his forces of darkness.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for the many times I have picked the wrong battles and injured people that in reality are on my side. Please give me grace and discernment to see beyond their accusations, jokes, behavior, and wrong attitude. Give me the strength to walk away from those situations where conflict can be avoided. Give me wisdom and proper people skills to quickly and firmly confront with truth and grace and to move on into the correct battlefield were I will face the real enemy. Please make me humble and free from demonstrating my innocence. Let me trust in you and in your ability to handle my conflict with others. Cause all my relationships to flourish within the boundaries of truth spoken in love. At the same time, don’t let me be like Eliab throwing accusations motivated by insecurity, envy, revenge, or hurt. Help me to hold accountable those under my care the way you should and always seeking Your very best in their lives. I love you Lord. AMEN!

Battlefield Mind

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. .
2 Corinthians 10:4-5


Observation:
The reasoning of our mind is crucial when getting closer to God. If our thoughts are wholesome, a sense of closeness and intimacy with the Lord will always increase. But if we are having X rated, selfish, sinful and polluted thoughts, a sense of distance will become more evident in our relationship with God. Our minds are the battleground in which the forces of evil clash with the Spirit of God. Our salvation starts and is maintained in our minds. We cannot experience victory over the sinful nature if our minds are not under the domain of the Spirit of God. Well-intended believers try to take over their sinful habits with positive techniques, alternative activities, and even religious traditions. However, if these practices are not tied up with an honest and diligent work of the mind, the efforts will be frustrating. Holiness in the body cannot be achieved without holiness in the mind. God took care of the holiness of our spirit in order to give us the weapons that will make our minds holy and our bodies holy. These weapons are not of the flesh but divinely powerful, meaning that they are effective to deal with the claws of sin in our life.


Application:
In order to walk in victory we must have the mind of Christ. We redeem our thoughts by staying closer to His word. However, remember that the devil has memorized the scripture and he still is the devil. We need to live out the teachings of the Bible and allow a transformation in our thinking. We cannot be saved and think the same way. Today’s church is very well depicted as a church that thinks like the world. Liberalism and secularism has infiltrated the church so much that policies are tolerant but blurry, leaders are popular but without authority, and principles are attractive but immoral.
We must become people that think the way God thinks. We must stay away from popular opinion and stay closer to God’s opinion. We must know the Scriptures but also the Scriptures must know us. We need to be moldable and teachable in our mindset towards God’s voice. At the same time, we must be stubborn and unmovable in our mindset towards the voices of this world.
We must use the weapons of our warfare in order to win the battles in our minds. As a leader I must put more into practice Samuel’s method of keeping his mind online with the Spirit of God:

"Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and right way."
1 Samuel 12:23


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you for the weapons you have supplied for me to win the battles in my mind. Please help me to bring my thoughts captive under you ruling and help me to think more like you think. As a leader in the church, help me to represent you well by having my mind online with your Holy Spirit. Help me to pray more instead of trying to solve people’s problems on my own. Help me to pray in the way godly leaders pray. Also give me boldness and wisdom to preach the truth in such a way that people are compelled to obey you. I highly value the opportunity you have given me to speak into people’s lives. So please help me to be diligent as much as I can to communicate your life-giving messages to those you entrusted me under my care. I love you Lord. AMEN!

Humility or Insecurity

So the Lord said, “behold he is hiding himself by the baggage.”
1 Samuel 10:22


Observation:
The first king of Israel was very handsome and tall but struggled with his inner confidence. Saul was from the smallest family of the smallest tribe, the Benjamites (1 Samuel 9:21). But he was chosen by God to be the king over the people. God gave the Israelites what they asked for, a king like the other nations, a man that would lead them into battle. Such behavior was a sign of the people’s rejection of God. They attributed their difficult fate not to their unfaithfulness but to God’s way to lead the people. They thought that having a man ruling over them would be better that having God over them. So God granted their request and gave them a tall handsome man to rule over them. But layers deep Saul was insecure. He had the looks and the muscles but he lacked heart.
Saul’s struggle with the idea of being king could be taken as reactions of humility. But the fact that he hid himself reveals that he was terrified, not humbled by the calling of God in his life. God even poured His Holy Spirit upon Saul in order to change his heart and make him confident in the assignment The Lord laid for him (10:6,9). However, Saul was unwilling to change in the deepest layers of his heart and struggled with insecurity not only at the beginning of his kingship, but for the rest of his life.


Application:
Insecurity has the potential to divert our true calling and makes us the subjects of the effects of external trails. Even though the Holy Spirit has changed our lives and made us a new creation, if we don’t expose the layers of insecurity in our lives from the beginning, our progress in our walk with God will be very difficult. We cannot allow insecurity to be a motivation for our actions. We cannot lead well if we have insecure thoughts, insecure feelings, and insecure actions. Is true that we must stay humble by God’s call in our lives, but we must never enter into the real of insecurity. The enemy will try everything to turn our humility into insecurity. We must be quick to help each other to stay humble. Humility is the balance between pride and insecurity. Walking in pride is as dangerous as walking insecure. People that struggle with either each will have the tendency to go to extreme opposite in pursuit of perfect balance. Such wavering of character will create an emotional rollercoaster that plums us down into frustration and defeat.
Today the Lord is encouraging me to stay humble, but careful of not enter into the real of insecurity. I cannot lead others and myself well if I struggle with insecurity. I must help others under my care to defeat the tendency of insecurity in their lives. The best way to stay humble is by staying true to ourselves. We must be objective with our own abilities and objective with God’s calling over our lives. The lord will never call us to something we are capable to do. He wants to be with us and work miracles in our midst. Our humility comes form recognizing that apart from God we are worthless, and our confidence comes from the fact that He who is in our side is stronger than those against us. We will conquer God’s will for us. And we will honor God as long as we follow His calling with humility and confidence.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please forgive me for the times when motivated by self-righteousness I have walk in the realms of insecurity. Please give me the confidence that your Holy Spirit provides in order to be the leader you have called me to be. Help me to lead myself well so I can lead others well. Give me favor to help those under my care to be more humble and confident in your calling. AMEN!

Remembering His Help

Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”
1 Samuel 7:12


Observation:
Samuel confronted Israel about their sin and exhorted them to turn to God from their idolatry. As the people gathered to repent and to renew their vows to the Lord, the Philistine army came down to wage war against them. Israel was confused and afraid. They asked Samuel to intercede to God on behalf of the people. Samuel offered sacrifices and cried to the Lord for deliverance. The Lord heard his prayer and with supernatural thunder he confused the Philistines. God gave a great victory to Israel that day. As a response for what the Lord did, Samuel decided to place a stone in order to remember how the hand of the Lord came to their aid. He named the stone “Ebenezer,” which means, “the stone of help.”


Application:
Why was so important to remember god’s help? Because Israel was going to face many more trials, many more enemies, and many more adverse situations where only the hand of God could deliver them. The stone was set there to send a constant message to the people and to generations to come that the Lord is a helping God. He comes in our aid when we pursue intimate relationship with Him. He wants to be our protector, our deliverer, and our father.
We must be diligent in placing memorials that will help us to remember that God is on our side when we remain by His side. We must remember those Ebenezer moments in which God has come to rescue us miraculously. We need those memorials around especially in seasons where we feel oppressed and cornered by the enemy. The memorials will be very effective in giving us hope, encouragement, and positive attitude when we find ourselves surrounded by hostile forces.
I recently live two Ebenezer moments with the Lord. The first was with our church in New Hope Diamond Head. The moving process to the Diamond Head Theatre was going to be difficult and monumental. We had not enough experience, resources, or people to do it on our own. We prayed and cried out to the Lord. Then the Lord heard our prayer and miraculously provided for everything we couldn’t supply for ourselves. He truly came to help us and took us to a season of blessing and growth. The second Ebenezer moment was in my personal finances. Last year I acquired credit card debt due to unexpected expenses with my family’s health and costly car repairs. A month ago I prayed to the Lord for help in this area and He heard my cry. Someone gave us a monetary gift that covered the exact amount of our debt.
Today I feel strongly encouraged to set memorials for these two Ebenezer moments in my life. I’m sure that I will not use stones, but I will find some creative ways to remember that God is our help in times of trouble.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you so much for being so faithful in providing your hand of help in times where I’m completely incapable to help myself. Please remind me that you are a helping God when I find myself cornered by the opposition of the enemy. Help me to walk closer to your side in order to have your favor and mercy always. Please don’t let me become independent from your presence and grant me more intimacy and insight of your heart. Help me to find creative ways to set memorials in our church and in our home that will remind us of your faithfulness and helping hand over us. Continue blessing our church and never let your Holy Spirit be away from us. We cannot bring people closer to you without you. We need you more than anything. I love you Jesus. AMEN!

The Rewards For the Generous

“Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May the Lord give you children from this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the Lord.” And they went to their own home. And the Lord visited Hannah; and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew before the Lord.”
1 Samuel 2:20-21


Observation:
Hannah was devastated by her barrenness to the point of desperation. More than a son she wanted God’s favor upon her. She wanted the Blesser more than the blessing. That’s why she vowed that she would dedicate a son if God would listened to her prayer. Eventually the Lord listened and she conceived a boy named Samuel. She fulfilled her vows by bringing the lad to the priests to serve God. Eli the priest saw this woman’s faithfulness and blessed her with the rewards that come to those who are generous. It was hard to have just one son, and she had it, she gave it away. As a reward, God blessed her five fold with more children. The Lord always rewards those who give sacrificially to Him.


Application:
The more that we give to God, the more we receive from Him. One seed of obedience in the proper time produces a crop of exponential fruit. This is especially true as we give and dedicate all we have to Him. As a young man I dedicated my body to purity towards my wife and God rewarded me with five times more joy I ever imagine. I dedicated my time and career to Him and He blessed me with more satisfaction and success that I could achieve on my own. I dedicated my finances to Him and He always comes to provide faithfully. God truly rewards those who are generous in heart.
I wonder what are some areas in my life when my level of generosity is low. Sometimes I don’t want to invest time and resources in people that are not capable to pay me back. In order to solve that problem I must dedicate the time I offer them and trust the Lord to do great works in their hearts. The more that I give away, the more room God has to work His miracles in my life and in those around me. I must be faithful with the broken ones that need lots of attention and care in order to build character and a sincere loving heart. I must give everything away in order to get the favor of the Lord. Hannah gave it all, even what she wanted the most, in order to experience the hand of the Lord in her side. I must be willing to give all my possessions, all my honor, all my positions, and all my blessings away in order to dedicate them to the Lord. The more I dedicate to Him, the more He will be dedicated to the desires of my heart.


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you so much for being so faithful and generous towards us. Please let me be a servant that is continually dedicating time, resources, possessions, and dreams to you. Do not let me get a hold of anything for my own benefit but allow me to bring every single blessing to the altar of sacrifice. Show me the areas where I am holding something just for my benefit instead of dedicating it to you. I give you all of my heart, all my soul, all my blessings, and all my desires. I trust you completely to take away everything in order to give me even more abundance. AMEN!

The Marks of a Servant

“…but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God, in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in distresses, in beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger, in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love, in the word of truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; as unknown yet well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death, as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things."
2 Corinthians 6:4-10


Observation:
These are the marks of the servant of the kingdom of God. Paul avoids clever persuasion and prefers to be a sincere recruiter when putting on the table the reality of his experience as a servant. He clearly defines the expectations of our service to the Lord. He paints a portrait with the vivid colors of valor, courage, joy and satisfaction. But he also mixes a darker chromatic scale of suffering, hardships, afflictions, poverty, and distress. Paul’s speech about the realities of serving God probably will not be welcomed in a Bible college graduation or in ordination ceremonies. We rather like the vivid colors to paint our life of service and avoid the painful darkened colors. We want a portfolio of success and fruitfulness without the unavoidable pain and suffering that takes us there.
Why is Paul so brutally honest? Why he has to paint so realistically? Well, I like to think that is because Paul knows the dangers of serving the Lord in a surreal way. He saw many come and go fascinated with the idea of serving God and yet frustrated with its complexity. Maybe he speaks out the wounds caused by John mark when he abandoned him in the ministry. The point is that Paul wants us to be real in our service to the Lord. He prefers a genuine servant that portrays all the marks of a true servants over a surreal kingpin of ministry that looks too clean, and too perfect.

Application:
I remember my days of surreal dreams as a servant of God. We feel invincible, like nothing can separate us from he love of God. Our expectations are high, but unrealistic. Then, in the path of service, we encounter the unavoidable reality that sticks to genuine servants. We see our canvas tinted with sorrow, suffering, trials, hunger, labors, afflictions, etc. My first response then was to complain and demand God for what I was expecting as a reward for my service. In his grace, he opened my eyes from my surreal lifestyle and took me to a place of understanding the marks of a servant. Why is so important to walk with such veracity and genuine attitude? Because is vital for our endurance in the battlefield. If we thing that going to war is a noble thing that will pump our valor and gallantry we will be quickly disappointed. Engaging in the heavenly army is a glorious most wonderful honor we could have. But is equally loaded with a price we must be willing to pay. When we walk in such reality, then we will wait for pain. And when we learn how to wait for it, we will respond to it properly. That’s why God takes us through seasons of training. These spiritual drills are supposed to develop a character of a warrior.
Almost every decorated soldier I have met has scars. Why not the servants of the real God?


PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please let me be a man that carries the true marks with honor and diligence. Please help me in those moments where I become desperate and I doubt of your love for me because things become difficult and unbearable. Give me an attitude to endure and persevere the pains and struggles until the blessing comes through. Do not let me live a surreal walk with you, but teach me how to adore you in the good and in the bad times. I love you Jesus. AMEN!