Following My Blueprints

Exactly as I planned,

it will happen.

Following My blueprints,

it will take shape.

[Isaiah 14:24, MSG]

What God has purposed He shall surely establish. From the beginning to the end of the bible, He resounds this promise to His own. "For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who can annul it? And His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?" [Isaiah 14:27]. God is not man that He should lie, neither is He the son of man that He should repent, whatever He has promised, He will do. 

Sometimes, we grow weary of waiting on God. We feel He is delaying and then we think we can speed up the process. We scheme and plan - sometimes like Sarah we manipulate, sometimes like the children of Israel we grumble and seek to find answers for ourselves when we feel God has gone silent on us.

The scripture for today says, "Following My blueprints, it will take place". Your loving Father has put in place plans for making His promise to you come to pass. If you have seen God at work bringing to pass His promise in other's lives, He will do it for you. His blueprint is all that matters. It may have been days, months, years or even time you have lost track of for which you have been waiting on God. Do not lose hope, keep your faith, because the Sovereign LORD helps you, you will not be disgraced. Therefore set your face like flint, and know you will not be put to shame [Isaiah50:7].

Many are the plans in a mans heart, but it is the Lords purpose that prevails. Rather than fret, rather than worry, ask God for the revelation of His blueprints. Your own ears will hear Him, right behind you a voice will say, "This is the way you should go," whether to the right or to the left. Follow His path, with uncompromising faith, no matter how far it seems from the path you envisaged. We serve a God who is both the first and last, who sees the end from the beginning, whose plans for us are of good not of evil. What more do we need to hold on to?

Prayer: My Loving Father, I bless You for You are the promise keeper. I thank You for the assurance I have in You, let it be unto me, according to Your word. Grant me the grace to stand firm in You so that I do not waver in anxiety,  and to draw closer to You so that I may know Your heart for each time and season. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Standing Firm With The Helmet Of Salvation

Take the helmet of salvation...

[Ephesians 6:17a, NIV]

A Roman soldier's helmet protected a soldier's skull and neck from enemy blows and falling debris. Just as the breastplate of righteousness guards the heart, the helmet of salvation guards the mind. The helmet of salvation guards a Christian's mind by providing hope, which is a joyful and confident expectation that God will keep His promises.

A person without hope is vulnerable to the enemy's lie that life is not worth living. All of us were without hope before we knew the Lord. Even after becoming children of God, we can still experience attacks against our hope. Our hope is in the salvation of the Lord - not only in His initial salvation from the penalty of sin, but also in His continuing salvation from the power of sin and the attacks of the devil. The enemy seeks to dissuade us from the  hope we have in Jesus Christ. However, as we yield to the Holy Spirit, God works His salvation in us. We are justified (made righteous) in God's sight by faith in the finished work of Christ. We are sanctified (set apart unto God) by the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit. We will be glorified when Jesus returns to receive us unto Himself, which is the culmination of our salvation. Thus, our hope and confidence is in God's ability to complete the good work which He has begun in us.

Many of Satan's battles against us happen in the mind. To counteract the battle going on against our minds, we need to receive God's Word with all readiness of mind and search the Scriptures daily.  Because God has provided us with the helmet of salvation, we need not be taken by the devil's evil schemes against our minds. Stand firm today with the helmet of salvation.

Prayer: My Loving Father, I thank You for my salvation, because it tells me of Your love and it gives me hope. I thank You for who I am in Christ, and that You who has started a good work in me is able to and will complete it. Father, there are certain situations that may make me doubt who I am in Christ and the significance of my salvation. May I be continually reminded to put on my helmet of salvation, which gives me hope. May I never lose my hope and trust in You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Encouraged With Strength

As soon as I pray, You answer me;

You encourage me by giving me strength.

[Psalm 138:3, NLT]

Our loving Father is a prayer-hearing and prayer-answering [Psalm 65:2, NLT]. As soon as we pray, He answers us. Sometimes we may not hear His answers because our hearts are clouded with cares and anxiety, or we are no longer able to discern His voice, or we already assume the answer He will give us. When we do hear from God and He wants us to wait longer than we expected, it could be disheartening.

In today's scripture, the Psalmist tells us that God encouraged Him by giving him strength. It was strength for the inner self to overcome temptation, to wait and to be expectant with each passing day.

You may be waiting on God for the physical manifestation of the answers to your prayers. You may have to deal with suggestions like "Why don't use take alternative measures? Why do you still trust this God who has not yet answered You?" Your loving Father makes everything beautiful in His own time and will never forsake His own. If you have to wait, He will encourage you, give you inner strength to be inflexible to temptations, and fill you with joy as you wait on Him.

Prayer: My Loving Father, my prayer-hearing and answering God, I thank You because as soon as I pray, You answer me. There are some times when I do not hear Your answers because my ears are not attuned to Your voice. Father, I pray for sensitivity to Your voice and Your words. There are times when I pray and Your answer implies that I have to wait.  I pray that I will be receptive to Your encouragement, which will give me strength to wait on You and overcome temptations. Thank You Father for answered prayers. In Jesus Name, Amen.