Given December 4, 2005
Have you ever felt that your faith was so weak that it was, well…dead? I sure have. There have been times when I felt my prayers weren’t going anywhere. We know when we pray for someone, we join our faith with theirs and believe for results. But what about when the other person’s faith is weak or absent. Can they receive anything from God?

I asked God about this and He reminded me of Lazarus. He received from Jesus and he was dead! How was this possible? Well, I went to John 11 to find the answer and found two reasons. Lazarus was a friend of Jesus. “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” John 11:11. And Lazarus’ family asked Jesus for help. “So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” John 1:1.

Of course there were other reasons Jesus raised Lazarus but these two stuck out to me. Are you a friend of Jesus? He’s said He loves you but have you spent time with Him, talking with Him and getting to know Him? That’s what you do with a friend. And, do you have family who will earnestly pray for your needs? It can be blood family or spiritual family, it doesn’t matter as long as they join their faith for you.

Do some preparation. Spend time with your Friend. Pray for others and love them and when your faith is weak, you’ll still get an answer from Jesus.

Given January 26, 2006

God has been speaking to me recently about patience. As I was listening to FamilyTalk on XM radio the other day, the speaker was talking about how God usually wants us to wait for something He’s going to give us. It reminded me of the old game show, “Let’s Make A Deal”. Do you remember that?

Here’s the situation: God says, “I’ve got this great blessing, (deal), I want to give you but, because you’re not ready to handle it yet, I want you to wait awhile. You’ll see, it’s going to be worth the wait!”

Now, on the other side, you’ve got the devil saying, “Don’t listen to that!” (Genesis 3:1) I’ve got some great things, (prizes), waiting for you behind door number 1, 2, and 3. And, you don’t have to wait! You can have it right now!” Wow, that sounds good, doesn’t it? He’ll even give you a glimpse of what’s behind one of the doors to entice you. And the crowd, oh my goodness, the crowd. These are usually your friends, family, and co-workers and most of them are cheering you on to take a door. Get it now!

Then, again, you hear the small, still voice of God saying, “What I’ve got for you Bill is unimaginably good, but you can’t have it now.” What are you going to do???

“Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.” Psalms 37:34 It happens all the time. This situation presents itself to you and me. Don’t deal with the devil, wait on God. He guarantees it will be worth your wait!

Given December 14, 2005
God has made many promises and provided many things for us that we haven’t taken hold of yet. Why is that? I’m reminded of when God told Joshua, “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.” Joshua 1:3. God had said, Moses is dead, the time of mourning is over, now get up and go take possession of what I’ve given you. But what had to happen before they could “take the land”? Joshua, as their leader, had to take that first step! And that was probably a scary thing. Moses had been leading all this time and now Joshua had to take over and step into the unknown. But God said He would be with him just as He was with Moses.

God has made similar promises to you and me but we can’t take possession of them standing still. We have to step forward, in faith, and trust that God is in control. He is you know.

I think of this many mornings when I get out of bed. As I take steps around the end of my bed, I’ll think of “taking ground”. I’ll say things like, “Greater is He who is in me than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4, “I have been made the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ my Lord.”, 2 Corinthians 5:21, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philipians 4:13. Every step I take, quoting these scriptures and some others, makes me stronger in the Lord. “Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7. Devil, get outta my way! And he does.

Don’t be afraid to step out into the place God’s calling you to. Memorize some power scriptures and take that first step. Man, what a wonderful land is waiting for you. Step into it!

Given December 29, 2005
Audio Version
Have you ever thought that you’re not worth much or that you can’t make any difference in the world. Well, I have. You see these well-known preachers, famous people, or even people in your community doing things you can’t do and it makes you ask, “What am I doing here?”

But, I want you to know, everybody has a purpose, everybody’s got something God wants them to do. There’s something you can do that no one else can. You are important! “Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.” 2 Timothy 1:9

Think about Noah. He was one man and look what he did. Nobody else could do what God wanted done except him. And what about a basketball team? You wouldn’t want the post player bringing the ball up the court, that’s the guard’s job. And you don’t want the little guard playing down low trying to score over someone a foot taller than he is. Each one has his own job and purpose that only he can do. BUT…they work together for success!

There’s something God wants you to do in your family, at work, in your neighborhood, on the golf course, wherever you are that only you can do. You have influence with some people that no one else has. And I’m the same way. So, if we take care of our own areas, our unique assignments, God’s work on earth will be successful. And we need to join together to do God’s work and not let the devil keep us separated.

Pray and ask God what He wants you to do that no one else can do. He’ll tell you , then…go do it!

Given December 29, 2005
I work with computers in education and frequently I’ll receive a message that says something like this, “New updates are available. Click here to download.” If it’s from my virus protection or spyware detection software, the operating system or a program I use frequently, I’ll readily click where it says and get the new files. The company has made their product better and they want to give me the updates. That’s good! I’ll take it!

I think God does the same thing. “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” Lamintations 3:22-23. Each day, God wants us to renew the Spirit within us because He knows we probably used up our supply for yesterday and we need to be refilled. He sends out His mercies, His Word, His love for us every day but we have to receive it. We have to get with Him, talk to Him, connect with Him, and He’ll fill us up to overflowing!

Think about that tomorrow morning and, “click here” to receive what God has for you and be renewed; “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” Ephesians 4:23