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Tuesday, October 29, 2013

God of Israel will help you TODAY!

Fresh Manna
by Pastor Tim Burt


"I really need to start ....!"   Do you ever hear yourself think or say those words. Some say "exercising." Others say, "eating better," Others say "reading my Bible and praying." The list is endless.

God does create desires within our heart. Of course they are always godly desires and they are to help lead us on the path He has for our lives. Psalms 37:4 (NIV) says, "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."

Sometimes we have things stirring in us that have to do with changes we think are needed. Thinking about them and actually executing them are two different things. Thinking about them can be so easy and can continue for days, months and years. Executing those changes can be so frustrating – too often resulting in a track record of aborted attempts. Has God been stirring up desires in your life about something He wants you to do? Have you been struggling to get started? Is there something you need so that you can do what it is you feel God wants you to do? Is it motivation? Is it courage? Is it resources of some kind? Is it all these things?

God has made His grace (His supernatural help) available to you. If He is creating the desire within you, He wants to help you fulfill that desires. Hebrews 13:20-21 (NLT) says, "Now may the God of peace...equip you with all you need for doing His will. May He produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him. All glory to him forever and ever!"

Hebrews 4:16 says, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Romans 5:2 says, "By whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Whatever it is, let God know and stand in faith for it.

I'll never forget one of these moments in Renee and my life. We had been talking about the need to get some strength building equipment in our home. We had an elliptical machine for cardio but wanted to work on building muscle. Ministry can create an unbelievable amount of stress. Exercise de-stresses and good health keeps us healthy so we can help others! We had been praying about it and both felt the Lord wanted us to ask and trust Him with this desire. The time had come to make the decision and put our faith and action to work. We felt like the Lord wanted us to make this change, so we quit talking about it and committed it to the Lord in prayer. We prayed and asked Him to help us get the equipping we needed so we could begin exercising like we felt we needed to.

I know we could have simply went out and bought what needed but Renee and I like to pray and have God lead us and equip us – especially when we think He is giving us the desire for the change He wants us to make. Not long after we had been praying about this, I ran into an old business acquaintance and friend. He manufactures this kind of equipment and had just developed a new home strength gym that they hadn't put out on the market yet. He wanted to get it in some homes to see how it worked for people and how they liked it. He sold it to us at a fraction of the price and it was an amazing piece of equipment – far beyond what we were thinking and the newest and greatest to hit the market. We could see God honoring our prayers and we were so glad we prayed and waited on God!  This all started with something stirring in our hearts and deciding "Today is the day!" 

Once you're sure it's God's desire stirring in your heart, it becomes time to take a bold step in faith believing it will be empowered by God’s grace. In the story of Joshua taking the people of God into the Promised Land, they came to the Jordon River. God told them to take a step into the river. As soon as they took that first step and touched the water, it parted and let them walk through as we see in Joshua 3:14-16.  "When the people set out to cross the Jordan, the priests who were carrying the Ark of the Covenant went ahead of them. Now it was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing its banks. But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river's edge, the water began backing up and piling up at a town upstream… Then all the people crossed over near the city of Jericho."

Procrastination is a curse. Doing what God is leading you to do is a blessing. But don't fear. You are not on your own! If God is leading you, He will equip you! Your faith is the bridge to that equipping. By His grace He'll equip you with the motivation, with the courage, and with the resources you need. "Today is the day." First, know what it is God wants you to do. Second, ask Him for help praying and expecting God to lead you and guide you. Be patient and stand and pray until you see God's hand and help. Third, take action steps He leads you to take. You have a part to play and that is to obey! Thank Him every step of the way as His grace empowers you with everything you need to do His will!  He will lead you and help you as you take the first steps of faith. His grace will help you keep moving forward until His desire is completed in you! Today is the day to take these steps! Declare for yourself,

Hebrews 13:21 "May God equip you with all you need for doing His will. May He produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen."

In His Love,
Pastor Tim Burt

Published by Pastor Tim Burt

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GOD WILL HELP YOU TODAY AND FOREVER!
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