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The Struggle to Seek or Find the Will of God Seeking and searching, in our contemporary language, suggests looking for something that is not there or can't be seen. But, is this what we do when we search for the Will of God? When most Christians say they want God's Will, they may actually want Christ to do their will! So, this subject must be sought with reverence and obedience or we will miss it completely, rebalancing our will for His so we can have the trash we want instead of the wonders He has for us. The struggle to seek or find the Will of God has conflicted and confronted countless Christians and non-Christians alike over the millennia. But, most miss the point of the quest and end up with the wrong items, declaring them as...

Oswald Chambers wrote, "You cannot help suffering; it is a true and needful training for the soul that dares to be true to God." Suffering is an essential aspect of our Christian growth, whether it is mental, physical, financial, or spiritual. It is the main connection that enables the batteries to power us to be the best Christian possible. It is the link between the Holy Spirit and God's perfect plan working in us. Without this vital connection, the power source of our Lord will not be able to prime us for His service. We may have the ability and the power of the Spirit, but the vital link between them is missing. A spark of truth and service may pass between them, so we think we are working and doing fine. But there can be so much...

God is our refuge and strength! As a pastor I hear this lament all of the time, sometimes it even comes from my own lips, "Why doesn't God help me in my troubles?" This is a legitimate question to ask. A lot of Christians tend to be afraid of asking God why, or earnestly seek to resolve their crisis. Thinking I do not have enough faith or I would not go through this. Or I do not want others to know, for they would think bad of me or that I caused it. Or we use the crisis to grab the attention ourselves. If we are going through tough times, we need to know why, and what we should do when we are in them. If not we become confused, frustrated and disillusioned. Yet in the Psalms we see David go through so much and still trust and obey...

(Matthew 16:24) “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.†Have you come to the point in your spiritual walk that you can honestly say to God the very words that Jesus prayed in the garden; “not as I will, but as You will.†(Matthew 26:38-39) “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me. Going a little farther, He fell with His face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.†Our flesh selfish and it wants its own way, but the more you deny it the more it will die and as the flesh dies, the spirit takes over more...

Doing our difficult emotional cleansing can take a toll on us and make us feel run down, but this too will pass. At times when we are detoxing our bodies, or going through the ascension process, we experience aches in our bodies and manifest flu like symptoms. We may find ourselves feeling fatigued and even sad, as if we might be coming down with something. This is a natural part of any cleansing process and commonly accompanies deep inner-work. As we are called to examine our emotions and our beliefs, which often prompts deep inner-changes as well as external shifts, our bodies grow tired. Feeling under the weather is the way they let us know that it’s time to take a break. It’s best to be easy on ourselves at times like these and...

HOW OFTEN ARE YOU TEMPTED TO LIE? Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception. May the LORD cut off all flattering lips and every boastful tongue that says, "We will triumph with our tongues; we own our lips—who is our master? Psalm 12:2-4 Do you always tell the truth or just a few "white lies?" What is your spouse doing regarding telling you the truth? Do your children know the difference between telling the truth versus lying to you, to their friends or to their teachers? Do you think our society has accepted "white lies" as part of life, as being acceptable and quite normal? What do you teach your children or possibly employees or does your employer ask you to say, "I am not here" when, in fact, he...

When I became a prodigal, the devil stole nearly everything I knew about God except for a few random phrases like "God is love" and John 3:16... I didn't remember any worship songs when God saved me from myself except for this one. I sang the first verse a few times when the Holy Spirit reminded me of it, and the next day I saw two deer. The next weeks, I kept seeing flocks of deer around my new home. It was such a blessing. Thank you Jesus. :) />

The Detour Road Stop! Just stop what you are doing right now! Take a moment and take in a deep breath. Now, take in another deep breath. Life is too short and precious for you to lose your direction at this time in your life. If you are reading this devotional, life has thrown you a curve ball, a knuckle ball and the future of your marriage and/or family relationships are in question. Stop! Again I say, breath in deeply! Think about what has just happened in your life, where you are right now, and where you need to be. Do you feel like you need some direction, perhaps a new path for your life? I suspect that you do. May I suggest you consult your Creator, the King of Kings. Let me suggest that you seek Jesus Christ’s counsel for your...