Lions and Serpents

You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot” (Psalm 91:13).

The symbolism of this language must not be dismissed; not should we pass too quickly from pondering its weighty significance for our lives today. For the language used in this verse is consistent with a recurring theme found throughout the entire Bible.
In the Garden of Eden we first see Satan in the guise of a serpent. Then moving forward to the writings of Peter in the latter pages of the New Testament, we are told that our adversary, the devil, “goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8).

Lions and Serpents. These are two of the devils favorite disguises. He also likes bats, hornets, spiders, scorpions, cockroaches, and all sorts of creeping things. He likes buzzards, but not eagles; ravens, but not doves; flies, but not honey bees.
He is a nasty sort of being, and associates himself exclusively with those earthly creatures that provide him a suitable cover for his onerous presence. However, deceitful to the core, he also dresses himself up as “an angel of light” from time to time, and thereby dupes countless souls who are too gullible to see through his costumes.

But may it never be said of us! May we walk the crimson path in the footsteps of our triumphant King, following closely all the way and seeing His victory become our own. May we walk by faith and tread upon lions and serpents. May the confession of the first disciples now find life upon our lips in these days so close to the End – “Lord, even the devils are subject to us in Your Name!” (Luke 10:17).
I love the Lord’s response to those early disciples – “I know,” He said, “I was watching as you went forth in My Name, and I saw Satan fall from heaven like a bolt of lightning!”

Then He added these words, “See what I’ve given you? Safe passage as you walk on snakes and scorpions, and protection from every assault of the Enemy. No one can put a hand on you. All the same, the great triumph is not in your authority over evil, but in God’s authority over you and presence with you. Not what you do for God, but what God does for you — that’s the agenda for rejoicing.” (Luke 10:18-20 The Message).

Whether it be bold opponents who come against us straightway like roaring lions, or treacherous adversaries who, like serpents, work their schemes against us with charm and subtlety – both alike shall be trodden down by the man and woman whom God protects.

May YOU be such a person!

Getting to the Point of Genuine Trust

(Prov 22:19 AMP) So that your trust (belief, reliance, support, and confidence) may be in the Lord, I have made known these things to you today, even to you.

I failed to mention this before, but a couple of verses ago we crossed over into a new section of the Book of Proverbs. Many consider this to be the third 'book within the book.' The first ended with 9:18, the second with 22:16, and now this third "book" began with 22:17 and will continue to 24:34. In this "book" we will see Solomon exalt wisdom in a didactic way. He is forthright and especially clear as he takes the teacher-student or parent-child approach to teaching. Solomon speaks to us, as his students or children, directly, intently, and personally (often using "you" and "I").

This verse (19) is a continuation of a thought that started with verse 17 and it continues on for two more verses after this one. Note the imperatives Solomon has given us thus far. "Listen to the words of the wise," urging us to give our full attention to divine wisdom, so that we can get God's ways down inside our heart. "Apply your mind," once again, driving home the fact that we must not approach God or His Word with any less than our full attention, giving ourselves over to His instruction. "Keep them in your mind," not only must we learn God's Word and ways, but we must remember them. The Word we hear will do us no good if we can't recall it when the situation demands the wisdom from it. "Your lips will be accustomed to [confessing] them," once we get God's Word cemented within the foundation of our heart, our lips will testify of our transformation and we will declare what God has already decreed, going 'public' with our beliefs. This way the student, who is willing to repeat the lessons of the teacher, can actually become a teacher himself as he shares divine wisdom with others.

So what was the purpose of all that Solomon taught us in verses 17 and 18? Why should we listen to, apply, keep, and declare God's wisdom? Verse 19 gives us the answer: so that our trust may be in the Lord. The more we do what Solomon is teaching us to do (listen to, apply, keep, and declare) the more we will develop a firm trust in the Lord our God. The Amplified Bible translation helps us understand what is meant by this word "trust." It's about settling in our hearts what we truly believe. It's about relying on God Himself as our single source for life and sustenance. It's about receiving divine support for our hopes, dreams, aspirations and efforts. And it's about developing an unwavering confidence in God that cannot and will not be moved. All these things are enveloped in the word "trust."

So what does this mean to you? It means that you must do all that you can to get to the point where you truly and totally trust God. But you will never get there is you don't welcome Him in. So give God the license to operate in your life. Open the door to your heart and allow Him the leeway to get involved in your daily experiences. The more you allow Him in, the more He will come in and the more you will experience Him in a personal way. Once you do and you start to listen to, apply, keep, and declare His wisdom, the end result will be your genuine trust in Him.

Father, I want to know You more and more. I want to develop in Your Word, will, and way. I want to get to the point where I am fixed, firm, and focused in my faith. I want to trust You with my whole heart. Therefore, I declare, by faith, that I will intensely listen to the words of the wise, I will give full attention to Your teachings, I will keep Your Word in my heart so I can recall it when necessary, and I will declare Your Word from my lips, openly and unashamedly taking You public. The more I do these things the more my trust in You will be solidified. I shall get to the point where my trust will be like Mount Zion - strong, firm, fixed, and unmovable. In Jesus' name. Amen!

Friends

I was reflecting today about a lot of things. One thing that came to mind was friends. Friendship involves recognition or familiarity with another's personality. Friends often share likes and dislikes, interests, pursuits, and passion.

Genuine friendship involves a shared sense of caring and concern, a desire to see one another grow and develop, and a hope for each other to succeed in all aspects of life. True friendship involves action: doing something for someone else while expecting nothing in return; sharing thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or negative criticism.

True friendship involves relationship. Those mutual attributes we mentioned above become the foundation in which recognition transpires into relationship. Many people say, "Oh, he's a good friend of mine," yet they never take time to spend time with that "good friend." Nor do they even return emails or phone calls or well wishes. Friendship takes time: time to get to know each other, time to build shared memories, time to invest in each other's growth.

Trust is essential to true friendship. We all need someone with whom we can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations. We need to be able to share our deepest secrets with someone, without worrying that those secrets will end up on the Internet the next day! Failing to be trustworthy with those intimate secrets can destroy a friendship in a hurry. Faithfulness and loyalty are key to true friendship. Without them, we often feel betrayed, left out, and lonely. In true friendship, there is no backbiting, no negative thoughts, no turning away.

True friendship requires certain accountability factors. Real friends encourage one another and forgive one another where there has been an offense. Genuine friendship supports during times of struggle. Friends are dependable. In true friendship, unconditional love develops. We love our friends no matter what and we always want the best for our friends.

Many of you are my true friends and some of you are my genuine friend.
I am grateful for you all but mostly I am so blessed to have so many True friends that I know will help me, comfort me, and encourage me.

Also I felt that the Holy Spirit was telling me today that if you love and appreciate someone let them know. Its really not that hard to encourage someone, if someone tells you that you look good return the complement.

I know that when someone email me and tells me they were blessed by something I did I feel so loved and appreciated, but on the other hand when someone don’t return my email it makes me feel to be brutally honest it hurts my feelings. So if I feel like that and I know who I am to my father can you imagine what someone who does know Him will feel?

God's Word tells us that a friend sticks closer than a brother, and that in order for one to be a friend, one must show themselves friendly (Proverbs 18:24). The question is: what type of friend do you desire to be?

The Borrower is Servant

The Borrower is Servant

(Prov 22:7 NLT) Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.

Happy Friday this has been a really long week for me and I am very happy that it Friday and I will get the much needed R&R time tomorrow.

A few verses ago Solomon said, "The rich and poor have this in common: The LORD made them both (v.2). Hallelujah!! In that verse Solomon was referring to the sovereignty of God. No doubt God is sovereign and He rules over the rich and poor, those in power and those under it, Black and White, Hispanic and Asian, male and female, and etc.; our Lord is the Lord of all. That is a spiritual truth and nothing will ever change it.

However, in this verse Solomon is much more practical. He was a sitting king and he clearly understood the earthly power he yielded as such. As a rich man and as a man of earthly position, Solomon knew good and well that the rich rule over the poor. He was not making this statement as some sort of revelation, because he expected his readers to know it. In Solomon's mind, the fact that the rich can exercise power over the poor was a given, so he used that statement of fact as a point of reference to connect his message to. The point of this verse was to teach about taking on debt. While I don't believe the Bible teaches that we should not take on any debt, at any time, I am convinced that it teaches us to be sober and careful when doing so. Just like the rich rule over the poor, Solomon teaches us that the borrower is a literal servant to the lender.

One could argue that the financial mess that United States has been dealing with for a few years now was brought about because of unscrupulous lending practices. Lenders and borrowers alike made poor decisions, but at the end of the day (for the most part), it was the borrowers who were left 'holding the bag.' And even worse, while the nation and its citizens are attempting to recover, the lenders still exercise uncanny control over the borrowers. Borrowers are seemingly powerless to the practices of the lenders. Which is why I believe Solomon made the comparison. Just like some rich exercise oppressive and tyrannical control over those they are in charge of, some lenders operate the same way. High interest rates and 'shady' loans are nothing new. These practices go way back to Solomon's day and there is no change in the foreseeable future.

So what does this mean? A few things:
1. Your decisions matter. God's sovereignty does not obviate us from making good practical decisions in the earth. Making poor financial decisions can have devastating results. Too many have taken on too much and then blamed God when their 'house of cards' fell down all around them.
2. Be prayerful and careful when taking on debt. While Solomon is not saying that a Christian should never take on a loan, he is making it clear that being a Christian does not mean that you will have special consideration with the lender. The lender will treat you just like every other borrower - like a servant!
3. Remember the value of delayed gratification. This is not talked about much today, especially in our microwave society (that wants everything RIGHT NOW). But there is a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment when you actually save for a purchase and are able to buy it out-right. You walk away from the transaction knowing that your item is paid-in-full and you don't have a lender ruling over you. It might take a little longer for you to get it, but the reward of not having to deal with a lender is worth it in most cases!

Father, I thank You for Your wisdom. Your Word gives me both spiritual and practical insight. Your Spirit leads me in the way that I should go and I am learning to apply Your principles to every area of my life. I acknowledge the dangers that debt can pose and I will be both prayerful and careful when taking on debt and when making financial decisions in general. With Your insight I am confident that I will make good decisions and that I will be able to reap the benefits of them. As Your Word states, I want to leave and inheritance to my children's children. To do so I must manage my finances in ways that are pleasing in Your sight. I honor You with all that You bless to pass through my hands and I shall experience the life You want me to have. In Jesus' name. Amen!

Parenting

Parenting

(Prov 22:6 NIV) Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.

Here Solomon gives parents both counsel and encouragement. The New Living Translation of this verse reads: "Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it" and the Message Bible paraphrase of this verse says: "Point your kids in the right direction-when they're old they won't be lost." As parents can find comfort in knowing that the training, directing, and pointing that Solomon tells us to do will pay big dividends for our children. I will highlight three things from this verse:

1. Parent for righteousness: Paul, while addressing his spiritual son Timothy, said the following: "Keep on being faithful to what you were taught and to what you believed. After all, you know who taught you these things. Since childhood, you have known the Holy Scriptures that are able to make you wise enough to have faith in Christ Jesus and be saved" (2 Tim 3:14,15). Paul was attributing a great portion of the 'great man of faith' Timothy had become to the Godly parenting he received as a child. Godly seeds were sown into Timothy when he was young and those seeds were still producing harvests while he was a mature believer, a pastor of the Lord's flock. As you parent, and as you seek to instill different qualities and values in your children, please make sure that what you are pouring into them is Bible-based. This way you can rest in the fact that you are parenting for righteousness.

2. Parent for purpose: We are to train up a child in the way he "should go;" this is not always the way we want them to go. we should seek the Lord concerning our children and partner with God to develop His purpose for their lives, not just what we selfishly want them to do.

3. Parent with the confidence of a long-term Return On Investment (ROI): Solomon tells us that the seeds we sow in our children's infancy and youth stages WILL produce harvests when they grow older. This is a promise we can stand on, even for those parents who are having an episode with wayward children. Stand in faith and believe God that the seeds you sowed in your children WILL produce a divine harvest. They WILL come back, they WILL line up with God's plan for their lives, they WILL find their purpose, and once they find it, they WILL follow it and finish it before they die!

Father, I thank You for Your Word. Your Word has rejuvenated my spirit today for parenting. I parent for righteousness. I instill Godly qualities, values, and virtues in my children. I pour Your Word down inside of them. I put Your Word before their eyes and in their ears day and night. I parent for purpose. I seek You concerning my children and I seek to partner with You to develop Your purposes for their life and living. Together, You and I, we shall prepare my children for their life's assignment(s). And Father, I parent with confidence. My labor shall not be in vain. The seeds I sow in my children SHALL produce a harvest - both now and in the years to come. I declare this by faith! In Jesus' name. Amen!

Two Paths

Prov 22:5 AMP) Thorns and snares are in the way of the obstinate and willful; he who guards himself will be far from them.

This morning we continue in the Power of Proverbs. Here Solomon gives us another of his famous contrasts. He contrasts the pathway of the person who stubbornly and willfully disobeys God with the pathway of the person who guards himself from anything that would be displeasing to the Father. Make no mistake, the two pathways are strikingly different. Back in chapter 13 Solomon spoke plainly about the difficulties that lay in wait for the sinner, saying, "The way of the unfaithful is hard" (v.15). The way of the unfaithful is hard because his path is full of thorns and snares.

In Genesis chapter 3, as a result of Adam's sin, the Lord cursed the serpent (satan), the woman (Eve), and the man (Adam). This is what he told Adam: "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree That I commanded you not to eat from, 'Don't eat from this tree,' The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you'll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you'll get your food the hard way, Planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you'll end up dirt" (Gen 3:17-19). Thank God that Jesus came to redeem us - to get us OUT of everything that Adam got us IN to!

In a natural sense thorns came as a result of sin. The garden, prior to sin, was thorn and weed free. In a spiritual sense the same holds true. Spiritual thorns come as a result of sin; as a result of disobeying God, ignoring His wisdom, disregarding His warnings, and rejecting His ways. So in that light we can understand how Solomon is explaining two options: we can either walk with God or without Him. We can either choose to accept Jesus as our Lord or we can reject Him. There are really no other choices and we will reap either the reward or the peril of our decision.

So what does this mean? It means you must make your choice. You can either choose the path that includes God or the one that excludes Him. Both paths contain challenges. I would love to tell you that the path with God is free from obstacles, but I would be lying. The difference, however, is that when you face those challenges WITH God - with His insight, wisdom, revelation and understanding - you are able to come out on top every time! On the path without God you face challenges as well, but you don't have the benefit of His grace. So choose God today. I mean really choose Him. Choose to face every day with His Spirit as your guide, His Word as your foundation, and His wisdom as the ruler by which you judge every decision. If you do that you will experience the grace and favor of God and you will enjoy every day of your life as you make your journey from earth to glory, from labor to reward, from time to eternity!

Father, thank You for making both paths vividly clear through Your Word. There is no mistake about it, I have two paths available to me, but I declare, right now, that I make the choice that is pleasing to You! I choose life and blessing, not death and cursing. I choose Your path Father. I enter every day with the blessed benefit of Your wisdom, insight, revelation and understanding. I am led by Your Spirit and governed by Your Word. I have accepted Jesus as my Lord. I am on my way to heaven and I am determined to enjoy the ride. No matter what I face, I know that I do not face it alone. I face every challenge head-on, by faith, and with the confidence of knowing that I will come out on top, because You are ON me, IN me, WITH me, and FOR me! In Jesus' name. Amen!

Developing the Spirit of an Armorbearer

See my servant….He will not break the bruised reed, nor quench the dimly burning flame. He will encourage the fainthearted, those tempted to despair.
(Isaiah 42:1-2 TLB)


In 1 Samuel 31:4-6 and 1 Chronicles 10:4–5, we find Saul and his army were fighting against the Philistines and losing ground. Saul's army, realizing that defeat was imminent, turned to flee. His men—including his sons—were killed, and Saul was wounded by arrows. He turned to his armorbearer and ordered him: "Draw thy sword, and thrust me though therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me" (1 Sam. 31:4).

Saul wanted to die at the hands of his armorbearer rather than be captured and tortured by the enemy. However, his armorbearer would not oblige him, so Saul took his own life by falling on his sword. "And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him" (v. 5).

When Saul commanded his faithful servant to thrust him through with his sword, "his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid" (v. 4). It seems peculiar that an armorbearer would be "sore afraid." He had been selected, trained, and prepared to serve in battle.

Because he was an armorbearer to the king, he was probably more skilled in warfare than any other soldier in the king's army. His duty was to protect the commander-in-chief. It doesn't seem logical that a man who was trained and prepared to give his life to save and defend the king would be afraid.

In the Hebrew, this word translated "afraid" in the King James Version is yare' (yaw-ray'). It does not mean to be afraid in the sense of being frightened or terrorized, but to fear out of reverence! In this case, it means "to sorely respect and honor"!

Now the armorbearer's reaction is much more understandable.

This man had spent all his time in Saul's service, caring for and protecting him. His entire reason for being was the preservation of the life of the king. If there was even the slightest chance that Saul could be saved from destruction, then he had to take that chance, regardless of the odds against its success.

Perhaps it was just too much to ask of the man who had protected Saul all this time to take the very life he had pledged to defend. He just could not bring himself to destroy the one he had spent his life preserving and protecting.

When your leader feels like throwing in the towel, do you "sorely respect and honor" him to the point that you would do everything in your power to stop him? You can see how important it is for you stay built up on the Word of God in order to keep hope alive and your faith unshakeable. Your confident expectation for good may be the very thing your leader needs to get him through a tough spot when all hope seems lost.
• Make sure you have the leader's God-given vision in writing and that it is posted in a highly visible place for all—especially your leader—to see. (Hab. 2:2.) Keep it in the forefront of your thoughts.
• Absolutely refuse to speak any words of doubt or unbelief regarding the situation. "Be steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord" (1 Cor. 15:58).
• Voice your confidence in your leader and the surety that God always causes him to triumph in Christ. (2 Cor. 2:14.)
Heavenly Father, it would be so easy for me to become discouraged and give up like my leader wants to do, but I cannot afford that luxury. My leader is depending on me to remain "steadfast, unmoveable." I refuse to give any place to the devil by uttering any words of doubt or unbelief. Against hope I believe in hope and will remain faithful to my leader till we see the victory, for it shall surely come, in Jesus' name. Amen.