Tag Archive for: king

3 Things Every Christian Must Know During COVID-19

By Robert Hotchkin

We are in the midst of some really interesting and challenging times.  There is all sorts of information, theory, confusion, opinion and conjecture swirling about in regards to this COVID-19 CCP Coronavirus pandemic.

Some voices are shouting that the virus is a man-made conspiracy meant to “thin the herd” with a bio-weapon.  Other voices are barking that it is a natural occurrence and evidence that the earth is trying to “shake off” humanity so it can rebalance its ecosystem.  Then there are voices screaming that this is the judgment of a wrathful God.  And others blaring that it is all a scam – just a deep state power grab and suppression of civil rights.

On top of all that, we also have a cacophony of opinions about the best way to deal with the virus.  Some say masks and gloves help.  Others say they have little or no effect.  There are those who claim ventilators are part of the solution.  Others say, no, ventilators might actually work to weaken the lungs.  And then we probably don’t even have room to get into all the conjecture, theories and arguments about the best drug treatments and vaccine approaches.

What are we to listen to?  What can we trust?  What are we to believe?

As is always the case for Christians, the best person to listen to is Jesus.  He actually taught into this very type of situation more than 2,000 years ago in Matthew 16:13-20.

Remember the story?  He and the disciples are coming into the region of Caesarea Philippi.  As they do, Jesus asks His followers what the report of the world is about Him.  The disciples tell Him that some sources say He is John the Baptist, while other voices are declaring he is Elijah, and then there are those who say He is Jeremiah, and still more proclaiming that He is one of the other prophets.

Jesus gives no heed to any of that.  He doesn’t even address all the theories and opinions being blared out by His day’s version of CNN, MSNBC and Fox.  Instead, He asks them, “Who do you say that I am?”

When Simon Peter responds that Jesus is the Messiah, the Lord says something truly profound that speaks into the very situation we are facing with the swirl of COVID-19 news, media, theory, information and conspiracy:

 

“Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:17-18 NKJV emphasis added)

 

Jesus is giving Simon Peter kudos for being able to “hear” past the noise of all the voices and opinions and conjecture and agenda and politics of the world, and instead tune into what heaven is speaking and revealing about the situation.  Jesus is showing His disciples then, and all of us now, that the key to thriving and even being blessed in challenging times is to focus on heavenly truth as opposed to earthly debate.  When we do this, He reveals, we will be established in truth, built upon the rock, and empowered as His church and Body. The result will be that nothing of hell will be able to prevail in the earth no matter how well fortified those demonic strongholds seem to be.

So, with that in mind, let’s look at three key heavenly truths that are critical for every Christian to know, and live from, right now. 

 [1]  WHO GOD IS

Who do you say God is during this pandemic?  In seasons of great challenge and need, what you believe about God is huge.  The Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever (see Hebrews 13:8).  That means we should not allow our temporary circumstances to impact our revelation of who God is and what God is like.  Just the opposite.  We should allow our revelation of who God always is, and what He is always like, to impact our circumstances.  No matter what is going on in the ever-changing happenings in the earth, the one thing we can count on is that God is the Lord and He does not change (see Malachi 3:6).  That means that God is still God.  He is still healer.  He is still deliverer.  He is still provider.  He is still protector.  He is still good, and He is still well able to bring about the very best results in this current set of circumstances.  COVID-19 has not changed who God is to you, for you, or with you.

 [2]  WHO YOU ARE

There is a reason you did not go home to heaven as soon as you got saved.  It’s because you have a key role to play for the Kingdom here in the earth.  When you said yes to Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you were not only forgiven of your sins and restored to relationship with your Heavenly Father for all eternity.  You were also restored to the plan He has had since Day Six – to have children made in His image who operate in His deputized authority and Holy Spirit power as His dominion stewards in the earth.  You want to know what God’s plan is to deal with COVID-19?  Look in the Word (see Genesis 1:26-28).  Then look in the mirror.  It’s you!  He knows it (see Luke 10:19).  He needs you to know it.  So that you start operating in the power and authority He has given you to heal the sick, raise the dead, feed the hungry, bring peace to the panicked, send forth His never-failing Word in intercession, pray for our leaders, and basically arise and shine because there is darkness in the earth that needs dealt with (see Matthew 10:1, 8; Matthew 14:16; Isaiah 55:11; 1 Timothy 2:1-4; Isaiah 60:1-1, and John 14:12)!

 [3]  ALL THAT YOU HAVE

2 Peter 1:3 is a great scripture to be meditating on right now.  It reminds you that by God’s great and divine power, He has blessed you with everything pertaining to life and godliness.  Did you catch that?  EVERYTHING.  Isn’t that amazing?!  Whatever you need for everyday life – He has blessed you with it.  Whatever you need to put God on display through your life – He has blessed you with it.  Not will bless you with it one day in the sweet by-and-by if you are good.  But has blessed you with it here and now because He is amazing.  So no need to panic.  No need to fear.  No need to hoard.  You have it.  And He will lead you into all of it (see Psalm 23:1-3).  This will allow you to look, sound and act differently than the rest of the world right now.  To be at peace when others are anxious.  To be confident when others are shaken.  To be a source of blessing, encouragement, wisdom, solutions, love, compassion, joy and much, much more when others are feeling bereft.  As you look and sound different from the rest of the world, the world will eventually take notice and ask why.  That’s when you get to share with them the greatest thing you have been blessed with – Jesus!

Don’t let the WHO, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, YouTube, your next-door neighbors, or anyone or anything else tell you what is true right now.  Let the Word of the Lord speak to you.  Let eternal truth remind you.  Let your Heavenly Father and His Holy Spirit edify, encourage and empower you.  Let them remind you who God is, who you are, and all that you have been blessed with in Christ Jesus.  Because when you do, COVID-19 will not stand.  And neither will anything else hell tries to send at you.

  

Robert Hotchkin is an author, minister, speaker and media host.  He is the founder of Men on the Frontlines, and one of the core leaders of Patricia King Ministries. He hosts the weekly Heroes Arise broadcast, co-hosts the show Propel with Patricia King, and is a regular guest and co-host of the show Supernatural Life on GodTV.  Robert’s newest book, 31 Decrees of Blessing for Men, is a powerful daily devotional that activates men to walk in all that they have been blessed with as sons of God.

I AM Coming Back

“Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.” John 20: 6-7

When Jesus rose from the dead, he took some time in his tomb to fold his face’ cloth and laid it separate from the linen he was buried in. Our Lord does things in wisdom to communicate to us a love message. So why did Jesus fold that napkin and put it away from the linen? Is he leaving us a message here?

In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about the Hebrew tradition of that day. It is believed that if the master of the house was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, “I am done”. But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because the folded napkin meant, “I am coming back”.

Whether this tradition is true or not, Jesus promised us many times in the bible that he is coming back for sure. His second coming is near and who knows maybe while I am writing this devotion he appears!

“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” Act 1:11

I tend to believe that the folding of a napkin next to a meal means, “I am not done eating, I am coming back”. When Jesus folded his face’ cloth after his resurrection, he laid it next to the linen his body was buried in and what is the broken body of Jesus Christ than the bread of life? The unblemished lamb of our Passover? The Lord’s body is the real meal of life! Jesus is not done; he is coming back for another round. Don’t clear the table church, spread the gospel, feed the nations THE bread of life, shed the light of God’s salvation to every soul sitting in the dark, as long as it is day do the work of him who sent you. Yeshua is coming back …

Glory to God
Tony Francis

Between Fake and Authentic: a Lost Identity

By Roula El Azzi

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:14

As a woman living in the Middle East in a country called Lebanon, I can say it is very challenging to stay simple and natural. Plastic surgeries have invaded our society and the media has had a big role in promoting it. Today, our society is suffering from fake beauty, fake identity, and loss of confidence in God who wonderfully and fearfully created each one of us.

The beauty of the woman has always been considered an important measure of her worth in society. As a woman, this made me always wonder “what if I am not physically beautiful according to the fake criteria of beauty?” I wanted to stay natural and simple without relying on heavy make-up, plastic surgery, or clothes that do not reflect my personality.

For several years, my label was “the girl with the big teeth”. It hurt, but I persisted in fixing my dental issues without changing my authentic identity. Even when in desperate moments I tried to copy others in following the latest trends and fashions and failed, the question of what authentic beauty that amazes the soul and create a lasting print of uniqueness in life is has always been on my mind. I asked myself this up until the day my soul met the one who loved me unconditionally; “Jesus”.

Experiencing Jesus was a turning point in my life, and yet I kept struggling with my physical appearance for several years until one day, I was on my knees praying and crying to the Lord: Please Lord let me see myself through your eyes only, not mine, not the eyes of the people around me, not the society’s, ONLY through your eyes! Suddenly, I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, peace and calmness filled my heart… I stopped weeping, stood on my feet and looked at the mirror… In that very moment I felt like I was out of time and space, as if I was looking at another person, a beautiful charming woman full of life. I touched my face in wonder, asking in a loud voice: “Roula is that really you?! Wow!” I saw myself as the most beautiful woman I have ever met! Since then, I understood that my identity is in Jesus Christ, and that nothing in this world can make me more beautiful than how He sees me.

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 1Peter 3:4

How does a woman living according to God’s call live in the modern world and remain an influence to others, a role model to follow who is not affected by the world? By wearing the righteousness of God and not the latest trends of the world, by reading the word of God and not the words of labels, by hearing the voice of God and not the voice of bullying, by knowing who she is in Christ and not in the opinions of the world. Jesus saved us and gave us eternal life, He gave us power over all of the plans Satan has prepared to destroy our peace and joy in the Lord. His precious blood shed on the cross is our worth, Let’s rejoice in Him!

I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Isaiah 61:10

Satan’s goal is to destroy the holy image of the woman. He works on making her out as a commodity for sexual lust, a tool for seduction and a shopping robot. We all, as women of God, have at times fallen into this trap, but our Lord did not leave us without guidance. He gave us His words as a lamp to our feet and His Holy Spirit to guide us in every step.

We all have an invitation today to remember our identity in Christ, to embrace His love, and accept ourselves as He created us.

His light is shining upon our lives, revealing the truth and unmasking Satan’s lies. His voice is calling; let us wake up to our true mission, a mission to make life, to speak life, and to give life to whoever needs it. To be the bride of the groom, loved unconditionally, cherished and honored, while remembering His words: You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you. Song of Songs 4:7

Getting Early to Meet Him

“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.” John 20:1

Recently Holy Spirit was revealing to me the great blessing of submitting my waking up from sleep in a time he wants so I can meet with the Lord. To be honest, I discovered the hidden importance of this mystery and blessing from the bible unpacked by messianic Jewish teachers. God put these teachings before me in a supernatural way to grab my attention about this lifestyle because he wants me to tap in what I am already grafted in, the blessings of my forefathers who walked in this and experienced encounters with the Lord in their early mornings.

I am not here to defend this or tell you when to pray and when it is better to connect with God. The most important thing in all this dynamic is to meet with God! But there is a special blessing for those who rise up early in God’s timing to meet with him. It was God who put Adam to sleep to create Eve for him and it was God who woke him up after he was done! Can you imagine how awesome and thrilling it is to ask God to put you to sleep and ask him to awaken you to him and his blessings? I want this, do you?

The author and finisher of our faith Jesus Christ understood this kingdom principle and walked in it and the bible tells us repeatedly here and there that as part of Jesus’s routine, he woke up early and went alone to pray to encounter THE FATHER before anything else! God always honor those who honor him and put him as first in priority. You will be rewarded by seeing his face, it doesn’t get any better! You will hear him clearly, get directions, downloads and breakthroughs early and prepare the way of the Lord ahead of your day. You will walk on a path of raw blessings because you have paved it early with the Lord.

I will be open with you about this. It is a new lifestyle for me to rise up in God’s timing to meet with him because I love to sleep but I knew if I let Holy Spirit awaken me and not my alarm I will be empowered by his touch and grace to do this and so it is. Halleluiah

I encourage you today to possess this blessing that your name is written on and experience encountering the resurrected Christ who will change your life radically.

Toni Francis

Daddy’s Face

By Sara Obeid

Seek My Face”My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek.” (Ps 27) 

I have always been learning about the importance of seeking the Face of God before anything else! But I never truly understood what it means until I had my son John (who is 2 years old now).

Newborns do not have our developed vision, all they see is blurry and the focus gets clear at 8 inches! Did you know that the most interesting object for newborns to look at is the face? When I came to think about it, it made lots of sense! ·

It is the center of interaction with others.  It is where our emotions appear through our mouth smiling, our eyes crying, our voice changing, etc… It is also where we can effectively communicate with each other. So I could see my baby's big smile whenever he saw my face! It was the highlight of his life. 

I learned that seeking God's face is important for genuine interaction with Him. But that was not everything.

One night as I was putting John to sleep, it hit me. I had been in his bed for more than 40 minutes waiting on him to doze off. He finally closes his eyes and starts snoring, oh the joy! few minutes later, he wakes up as i maneuver to escape, crying he turns around and touches my face; he put his fingers in my nose, on my eyes, my lips, checking my teeth and suddenly this peace fills him and I could feel as he went back to calm breathing. In few seconds, he went back to sleep.

It was a new revelation to my soul! Seeking His face gives me PEACE! It is not only seeking God's approval and interaction, but it is also resting in the knowledge of Daddy's presence and touching His eyes and mouth. It is about memorizing His features and details, knowing that He did not forsake me and never will. It was more than just seeking the face of “God”, it is the comfort in seeking Daddy's face. I discovered that I needed to walk into the childlike faith where I would reach out to touch my Daddy's face even if my eyes are closed and allow His peace to fill me.

“The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”(Num 6)  

 

The Angel & the Trumpet of Humility

Thursday 4 April 2019, I was spending some intimate time in prayer with my Lord Jesus at night as I usually do. These are my best moments ever when everyone is sleeping in the neighborhood and when it is quiet, I connect to Heaven. While I was praying, I mentioned by the Spirit of the Lord this prayer “the breakthroughs of Humility” and when I uttered this prophetic prayer, something happened. I saw in a vision an Angel in my room standing to my right blowing a trumpet. I kept myself engaged in this vision to receive what the Lord is doing and why he sent this Angel.

As we know from Hebrews 1:14, Angels are God’s spirit ministers sent to serve us in our inheritance. How often do you hear a faint thought from God or a vision and you ignore it? Well, if you engage with it long enough you will get understanding and open up to receive what God meant to give you. In the book of Acts 10, Peter kept thinking of the vision of the heavenly basket then the scripture says: “The Holy Spirit spoke to him”.

Thank God, I didn’t ignore this angelic ministry. I looked back at his trumpet and saw engraved on it the word “HUMILITY”. I stepped by faith and stood where the Angel was standing in my room. When I did that and stood in the Angel, the spirit of prophecy fell on me and started prophesying over myself great powerful words about me being transformed into humility more and more. I don’t remember all the words I spoke by the Spirit, I remember things like: “I will think humility, speak humility, look like humility … then I commanded PRIDE BOW DOWN, etc.”

The next day the Lord used me mightily ministering to others and prophesying great stuff over them. No wonder God released his power through me the next day after he secured and established me in humility the night before!

I am sending my prophetic experience to the whole church to release the activity and ministry of this angel for you because I feel doing this. May you experience the increase of Christ’s humility in your life … because great things are coming your way and God wants you to position yourself well for power & love on the cornerstone of humility! AMEN

Toni Francis

You can also watch this blog as a Vlog (Video Blog). Click here to watch it: The Angel & the Trumpet of Humility

The Reality of Spiritual Substances

God is the God of manifestations, he simply is. He wants to reveal himself to you clearly so you can enjoy his tangible love, goodness, mercy, salvation, protection and all the good things he has in store for you. God’s glory is he who is and what he has and he poured it all over you in Christ! It can’t get any better.

A couple of days ago I met by a divine appointment a group of amazing believers, two sisters and one brother in the Lord. They came from a different country for a few days and I had the privilege and the honor to spend some time with them. We shared lots of God stuff in my country and theirs. We were both so blessed to hear what God is doing among his church and we were celebrating that! One of the dear ladies called Lin opened her heart and shared with us her many amazing precious God encounters and oh boy how blessed and excited I was to hear it. I was amazed and surprised by the simplistic childlike faith she has and how the Lord lands on her kind of faith with signs and wonders! She brought with her many things and photos that backed up her beautiful genuine stories and I had the opportunity to witness it all. She showed my friend and me different colored perfect gemstones (as examined by a gemologist) that fell from heaven on many occasion and each gem has a beautiful story that speaks about our good good heavenly Father. I saw Angel’s feathers’ photos, oil from heaven, heavenly bread with chunks of gold and other cool stuff. I kept wowing with each story and was definitely caught by the thrill of seeing tangibly these good gifts from dad not to mention that I felt the anointing and the presence of God on some items!

Later after they left back to their country, I was thanking God for this opportunity to meet them and pondering the amazing things my ears and my eyes experienced closely. Then as simple as this is, the Holy Spirit interrupted my excitement in his kindness and corrected a major thing in my heart. He prioritized it all to me once and forever.

What I saw was so awesome and with a big YES you must remain open for God’s signs and wonders and we want to see visibly his glory and blessings. I want God to invade all my dimensions, the invisible and the visible. But remember that in Christ, you are a SPIRIT being of light and God wants your thrill to be first in the spiritual because this is who you are FOREVER! The spirit world for you must be your main focus before anything else. You are a spirit, with a soul living in a body. Yes, God loves to see your smile and joy when you receive his gifts in the physical realm but he wants you to be excited to spiritual realities first, to the invisible king and kingdom within you. We tend to think that if it is touchable then it is tangible and we get frustrated if we don’t experience glory in our mortal fleshly senses. But my friend let me adjust you as Holy Spirit did for me if it is spiritual it is also TANGIBLE and more real and remaining (Matthew 6:19-21).

God wants you to believe that what he gives you as spiritual things and substances is tangible and real. The experience of it may be different from the physical and the natural because you are operating in another dimension a supernatural one but it is real and tangible for him so it must be for you! The presence of the invisible Holy Spirit with you is something spiritual and he will never become flesh like Jesus, he will stay your invisible helper. But being invisible doesn’t mean he is not a real person around you. Holy Spirit is real and tangible and not believing this is a dishonor of Jesus’ promise when he said he would send the helper to be with you forever and lead you into all truth and he did.

In Christ, you are a spirit first so making the spiritual your priority is important but press in to see God’s glory in other dimensions as well. We want God to fill everything but first the spiritual.

Final note: After Holy Spirit met me and adjusted my excitement, I lifted my hands to heaven and asked my heavenly dad to give me a gemstone because he is no respecter of men, he favors faith, not people. I was sitting on my bed and I was waiting on him after I requested that from him and it is up to him to give it or not, you can’t force him. Then I saw in a faint image in my mind a blue gemstone dropped on my bed, it was not in the physical realm (the lowest realm) but in the spiritual. So by faith and with so much innocence and simplicity, I stretched my hand to grab it, although, in the seen dimension my hand is empty, yet I believed I was holding a blue gem in the spiritual. BECAUSE I honor the spiritual first and it is tangible for me. I can say I have a gemstone from heaven from a different perspective :} and it is up to you to believe it or not.

Toni Francis

The Narrow Path

“I am the living One. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.” Revelation 1: 18

The very thing you overcome, you possess its gates! Jesus conquered death and the grave for you and today he lives forever and ever and holds the keys! Keys speak of authority, the one who owns the house has its keys! You are the master, the owner because you own the house! When you overcome depression by the graceful workings of the Holy Spirit in your heart and life, then you hold the keys to joy forever and ever. You own JOY!

The narrow path is not attractive nor appealing for anyone to go through. We want the easy way and I am not saying that God doesn’t offer easy opportunities for us but going through the narrow path where you drink the cup of suffering will make you sit next to Jesus! I have good news to tell you, the hell you are going through or you went through before wasn’t meant for your destruction but a stairway to your permanent promotion, a serious preparation to give you the keys of that very thing and make you owner over it.

Authority derives from the word author and you don’t have authority over what you don’t write with the sweating ink of your sufferings! Let me ask you this: what did you overcome so far? What are you overcoming right now? Reading this devotion will open your eyes to read well your future and to position you to receive the documents of ownership God is signing for you!

You are the master, you are the owner, you have and you will get the keys and then you can offer others help the way Jesus did with John the beloved where she showed him the keys of death and grave to tap into what he conquered for him. Winning your battles are not only yours but others as well!

Toni Francis

I highly recommend you watching this message of T.D Jakes on “Serum Solutions”! Click here to watch it

She Was Caught In The Action

A Jewish woman was caught doing sex outside of marriage in the context of a prostitution lifestyle. I can’t imagine the emotions she went through when they caught her naked in a very intimate intercourse scenario. Maybe that woman went through her day as everyday feeling secure and safe that she will do her thing as usual, get paid and leave home. Little did she know that day was life-changing for her.

The reason she was caught in the action was to test Jesus Christ big time. Facing all the religious leaders and community back then, will Jesus contradict the laws of Moses by sparing her life or will he agree with them and kill the woman?

The case is so clear, she must die, according to them. Jesus, what do you say? They want to catch Jesus in the action too, this time if he breaks the laws, we will kill him too along with the woman!

Jesus was silent for a moment. Pressure and intensity filled the atmospheres. All eyes and ears were toward Jesus. Religion was beholding Jesus not to change into his image but to change Jesus into their image!

… The final verdict was released from Heaven. Jesus heard his Father! It was the same life-giving wisdom that king Solomon operated in to spare the life of a newborn baby and gave him back to his real mother. There was greater than Solomon, WISDOM himself Jesus Christ!

“But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7

In this religious crowd, Jesus was the only one without sin among them. He could have stoned her to death easily after his statement to show them all that he is the righteous one, the lamb of God, it was his chance. But it was not about him, it was about saving and redeeming that precious struggling lady. If you had a big life chance opportunity to prove to others that you are so right versus promoting love and life, what do you choose? Knowledge kills but love builds.

“When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court.” John 8:9

Wow, beginning with the older ones! It is a misconception to think that elders are holier than the youngsters. In this case, the older ones left the place of judgment. It is good that they were aware of being sinners but it is sad that they left quickly back to home with their sin. They too had the chance to repent, be forgiven and redeemed. Yet by holding to their sin, they stoned themselves out of God’s presence and mercy.

“Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.” John 8:10-11

That day the Lord gave her another chance. Sinners will be the first to enter the kingdom as Jesus said. Not because they are sinners but because they met the Savior and responded to him. Jesus loves you and wants to redeem you and restore you to a beautiful everlasting relationship with him.  

Toni Francis

You can also watch this blog as a Vlog (Video Blog). Click here to watch it: She was caught in the action

The Great Focus

I am busy these days purchasing some basic needs for my life. Looking for a better house, a good vehicle, a godly woman and other stuff as well. God loves your desires that are aligned with him and he is for you not against you. After all, he is a good Father and wants the best for you. He is with you in your purchases and wants to bless you with the best if you involve him and pay attention to his guidance.

This morning while I was spending time with God, he gently taught me something that changed my life. I want to share this precious nugget with you here. God taught me to have faith in the little things. Yep, this is it! Like believing for your next step, your next move, your next relationship, your next business deal, whatever this “next” is for you. It made sense to me! Like yeah, what if I believed for my next house? What if I opened an ongoing dialogue with God about each small step I am going to make regarding this? Believing for the little things is important to reach your big goals. Because sometimes seeing your final destination can be overwhelming if you don’t plan your way to it with small steps that lead you there.

Maybe you are familiar with the google map or any kind of map you use in your apps. You launch it, set the destination and you focus on following successfully the live tracking of each small direction. Man, it feels good when you see yourself passing all the suggested roads successfully because it gives you a sense of approaching your final destination! You can use this technology with God while you purchase your desires. Have faith in the little things like your next step. Make sure you are on the right track in each small step because sometimes one wrong direction can alter your whole course!

Joseph, the good man who fathered Jesus, believed in this technology. There is not much covered about him in the gospels but what he did was FOUNDATIONAL or we may have missed our redeeming Christ. Joseph in parenting Jesus was so focused on the sake of Jesus and what is best for him rather on what’s good for him and his wife Mary. Each step he made was faith-filled. It takes a great faith to believe that your future wife is a Holy Spirit pregnant. But here lies the power of KNOWING that you heard God! Thank God for his faith. He accepted to marry her, he ran with her to Egypt to protect the life of 2 years old Jesus, he stayed there and came back when he got the green light of grace to come back to Israel after the enemy wanting Jesus to die was dead. He was careful where to live and what to do to protect the life of Jesus entrusted to him, the savior of his people and the nations.

Jesus was the great focus of Joseph! He believed for a place for Jesus’s birth. In everything you read about Joseph, you find that he believed for the little things, for his next move. Because he knew that in doing so successfully, he is investing in the greater.

This perspective changed my faith focus! I was believing for my next house because I wanted a better one for ME. Now I am more focused on purchasing my desires with Jesus in my focus! God lives in me and each step I am going to make I want it to protect the Jesus within and allow him to grow perfectly. My questions now on will be such as: will my next move bless the Lord or will it expose him to dangers and threaten him? Will my next association and relationship preserve the life of Jesus within me or will it destroy it?

Now I know how to purchase my dream goals by having in me THE GREAT FOCUS, Jesus! Because when he is blessed, I am blessed!

Toni Francis