We have been talking about the heart of man. In the book of Proverbs we are told to guard our hearts, because out of it comes the issues of life. What issues are you facing today. When our circumstances get desperate, the issues that are in our OWN hearts begin to rise to the surface. God does not want us to have a heart that is dominated by worries, anxieties, frustrations, anger or self pity.
1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you.
God wants us to have a heart that is dominated by God's love. When we have the idea that our circumstances are going to have to change before we can be joyful, we are letting or circumstances dictate to us what life will be for us. How are we going to have a heart after God's own heart? By casting all of our cares on him. Some of us got something in our hands. We got a hand full of problems. Moses had a big problem. There was a big sea in his way. There are times that we think that everything would be OK, if we could only get this problem out of our way. Getting that sea out of the way only lead to ANOTHER problem...a desert without water. We look at our current problem and think if only I could get this problem to go away...but when it goes away, it just opens us up into another situation, another problem. This is how some have been living from day to day, year to year. Fix one problem run into another. You keep waiting for the problems to go away, so that you can finally have peace and soundness of mind, but they NEVER go away. Problems just keep coming, and coming, and coming.
When will the problems go away? It rains on the righteous and the unrighteous, to some degree there will always be problems, but you have to know what season of life you are currently in. We see in the story of Moses some of the seasons of our lives.
season one: In bondage in Egypt. Are you in bondage to any type of sin that has made you it's slave? If so you will face the oppression of that slavery until God delivers you from it. Why would you want to remain in slavery? Yet, when Moses went in to deliver them, some of them wanted to stay in slavery. Slavery was all they knew, they weren't confident that they could ever escape their slavery. It was easier just to stay where they were in bondage. This is how we are when we are in bondage to the sinful nature. It takes a lot of attention and effort on our lives to let God purge us, and wash us, and make us without spot or wrinkle. If you are in bondage to sinful living your problems will continue to come one right after the other. God keeps us right where we are until we learn to overcome this world. God wants you to learn that we reap what we sow, so do not sow to the flesh. You may think that the problem is your lack of money, or lack of relationships, or lack of provision or opportunity. Nothing is going to bring you to wholeness until you learn to stop living for the sins of the flesh. 'fixing' any of those other things will not bring you any closer to fulfillment. Serving a desire of your flesh will own you when you are in Egypt. You will lose everything in your life to serve that sin of the flesh that demands you feed it. When you learn to put to death the works of the flesh, and to put on the LORD Jesus Christ you will be ready to move into the second season.
season two: In the wilderness. When God has you in the wilderness, your life will go in circles until God let's you out of that wilderness. In the wilderness you are learning to overcome the sins of the soul. You see when you are in slavery in the world, you are learning to over come the sins of the flesh, but there are also sins of the soul. Your mind, your mouth, your heart...all of these things can sin, even when all you are doing is sitting still thinking...If we do not learn to overcome the sins of the soul, we will be walking all of our lives walking around in circles never getting anywhere. When God said, "don't doubt." He meant it. When God said, "don't worry." He meant it. When God said, "forgive others." He meant it. In the wilderness they weren't making any ground whatsoever and they had nothing but problem after problem, after problem...You lack of food and water, clothing, transportation, job, money or whatever is not your problem, the problem is in your own heart and soul. When God said, "learn to be content in everything" and "give thanks in all things." He meant it. In the wilderness you will serve LACK. All you see is lack. All you think about is what you don't have, what ain't working, what is NOT there. When you learn to honor God even above your own lack, you will be ready to go to the third season of life.
In the third season, God brings you out of your own lack in the wilderness, and gets you going a certain direction in life. It is here in the third season that you become a problem for the enemy. Instead of being oppressed of the devil, now you are taking out the devils stronghold. But, there are still problems. There are walls you must break down, rivers you must cross, enemies that you must expel. It is in this season that you are walking in faith and obedience to God, and just like Jesus you are going about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil. Instead of the devil being a problem for you, you have become a real problem for the devil. Everywhere you go the kingdom of God has come close to those that you touch, and many are brought closer to God by your witness.
All of us want to be that person that is strong in the LORD taking down the enemies strongholds. You won't get there until you complete the first two seasons of your life. You must first learn to overcome your own flesh and soul before you will be able to take down the enemies strongholds. We are in bondage to our fleshly desires, griping, fussing, worried, angered...and then declaring the enemies strongholds are going to fall. yada yada yada...All that declaring and confessing is pointless when you are still in bondage in Egypt. All that declaring and confessing is pointless when you are still going in endless circles in the desert. You can confess, profess, declare, and tell the devil to beware all that you like, but, if God has not taken you across the Jordan, you are just shouting at the wind! The only way across the Jordan is through the red sea where you shed your flesh, and through the wilderness where you learn to quiet your soul upon God!
That brings us to the fourth season of life. God's rest. When you have overcome your flesh, overcome your soulful sinful desires, and torn down the enemies strongholds you have entered into your season of prosperity and rest. Now you have become God's stronghold, prosperous in God and in the power of his might. Lord God, may we all be given the grace to enter into your rest. amen.
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