12/15/07 [Pastor Mark Hankins Resources]...

Do yourself a favor, and INVEST into your Spirit Man...you can't afford not to! P.S....I have all of these books!! Pastor Mark Hankins has his "ear on God's bossom, and his hand on God's pulse"...This is some Good Stuff!!

12/6/07 [Requiring The Lord] (By Stephanie a.k.a. Mrs. MYNISTA)

"Requiring The Lord" by Stephanie a.k.a. Mrs. Mynista

thirtyoneonline@yahoo.com

There are a lot of things we do not and cannot understand in life. Many people are constantly asking “why” and that question is not always answered. While God does not want any of His children to suffer, we know that He does use what the enemy means for bad in our lives to ultimately bring about something good. His Word says so, and we can confidently put our trust in that!

Psalm 34:4 says, “I sought (inquired of) the Lord and required Him [of necessity and on the authority of His Word], and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:10 says, “...they who seek (inquire of and require) the Lord [by right of their need and on the authority of His Word], none of them shall lack any beneficial thing.” When I read these verses, a couple of things jumped out at me. First of all, we must seek the Lord. The Bible says that as we draw near to God, He will draw near to us. Part of our responsibility is to seek Him and draw near to Him. If we fail to do that, how can we expect to really know Him?

The second thing that hit me was the fact that we “require” the Lord. If you’re doing something in your life where you have no need of God then it’s probably not part of His plan for your life. Part of being in a relationship with Him is recognizing that we can do nothing (no thing) apart from Him! When you start to think you have it all figured out on your own, with your own intellect or connections, be very careful. It is the jobs and needs that are so big in our lives that we could never take care of by ourselves that give God the opportunity to show Himself strong and faithful! It’s in the times when He allows you to be stretched so thin that you think you’re going to break and then He proves Himself strong and faithful that you really come to know Him better. If you’re really going to go the distance and fulfill the call of God on your life, you will be stretched, and you will have to know God intimately for yourself. It won’t be enough to hear what He’s done in someone else’s life. You will need to experience His strength and faithfulness personally.

I heard a pastor give an awesome analogy: the farther back a person stretches a bow when shooting an arrow, the farther the arrow will fly. If they only pull back on the bow a little bit, not stretching it to it’s full potential, the arrow will most likely fall short of the target. It’s when the person pulls the bow back so far that they think it’s going to break that the arrow will fly farther and with more accuracy to hit the target. If God is stretching you right now and you have a need that only He can meet, be encouraged that as you stand in faith, not wavering in doubt, He will prove himself strong and faithful in your life!
God is not moved by need. Why do you think that there are so many people with needs so much greater than yours and they don’t get met? Many times it’s because they aren’t standing in faith on God’s Word. It’s when you mix your faith with God’s Word that His power can be activated in your situation. God is not moved by need; He is moved by faith.

Finally, these verses in Psalm 34 remind us that God does hear us and that He is faithful to deliver us and set us free. Where do you need freedom in your life today? In your physical body? In your finances? In your relationships? Whatever your need is, cry out to God because His ears are open, and He is just waiting to be faithful to His Word. Find some scriptures that correspond with your need and speak them! Life and death are in the power of the tongue. Use your tongue to breath the life of God into your situation today, and watch Him come through for YOU!

"Requiring The Lord" by Stephanie a.k.a. Mrs. Mynista

thirtyoneonline@yahoo.com