Psalms 34:10
(10) (34:11) Kaf. Die jong leeus ly armoede en het honger; maar die wat die HERE soek, het geen gebrek aan enigiets nie.
In my gebedstyd vanoggend het ek die Here hoor sê dat Hy nie kompeteer teen ander stemme in ons koppe nie. Hy wil hê ons moet na Hom toe kom, ons gedagtes stil maak en doelbewus luister na Hom. Ons moet ‘n keuse maak om Hom te hoor. “Draai jou oor na die Here”.
Soek is ‘n werkwoord – dit is ‘n aksie. Ek soek God se stem oor sekere dinge en besef dat ek verwag het God gaan my lei selfs deur die geraas rondom my. Ek het altyd gesê dat God my sal lei ongeag wat. Dit is waar as ons gaan stil word in daai tye. Ons moet God respekteer en die ander stemme stilmaak. Die wêreld, geld en familie sake sal ons harte so oorneem en dryf dan die stem van die Here uit. God kompeteer nie vir aandag nie!
Dit is krities dat ons almal gereelde tyd met die Here moet hê. Ons moet daagliks tyd maak sodat ons nie aanhou hardloop met die lewe sonder dat die Kaptein die skip seil nie. Die Kaptein sal die skip stuur as ons Hom toelaat, maar as ons Hom nie toelaat nie staan Hy by en sien hoe ons die verkeerde rigting gaan, tot ons weer stop en uitroep en Hy ons dan weer terugvat na waar ons van koers gegaan het.
Ek wil julle uitdaag om die moeite te maak om meer tyd in die teenwoordigheid van die Here te spandeer, daagliks. Ek het oor die jare geleer dat hoe meer tyd ons saam God spandeer hoe meer vryf Sy reuk aan ons af en hoe meer ken ons Sy gedagtes. As ons kan weet hoe God dink sal ons weet wat om te doen in elke situasie. So, sit die TV en die rekenaar af en sit die Woord van God aan in jou lewe. Stem jouself in met God en laat Sy uitsending jou gedagtes en hart bereik. Raak ontslae van die geraas wat die uitsending benadeel. God sal vir ons groot en wonderbaarlike dinge wys en sal ons groot gebruik as ons net vir Hom sal tyd gee.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Seek God's face
Psalms 34:10
(10) The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
As I was praying this morning I heard the Lord say that He will not compete against the other voices in our heads. He wants us to come to Him, quiet our minds and deliberately listen to him. It is a choice that we have to make to hear Him. “Harken unto the Lord”
Seek is a verb – action. I am seeking God on certain issues and I realize that I had expected God to lead me even through the noise around me. I always say that God will lead me no matter what. This is true on the condition that we become quiet. We must give Him the respect and silence all other voices. The world, money and family issues will crowd our hearts and drive out the voice of the Lord. God does not compete for attention.
It is critical that all of us make regular times to hear the Lord. We should do this daily so that we do not run along in life without the Captain steering our ship. The Captain will steer the ship if we allow Him to, but if we don’t He will stand by and watch as we go the wrong way, until we cry out again and then He takes us back to where we went off course.
I want to challenge you to make the effort to spend time in the presence of God daily. I am learning this over the years that the more time we spend in His presence the more His fragrance rubs off on us and the more we get to know how He thinks. If we can know how He thinks we will know what to do in every situation. So, turn off the TV, or the computer, and turn on the Word of the Lord. Tune into God and allow His broadcast to reach your mind and your heart. Get rid of the noise that hinders the reception. God will show you great and awesome things and He will use you mightily if you will just give Him some time. AMEN..
(10) The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
As I was praying this morning I heard the Lord say that He will not compete against the other voices in our heads. He wants us to come to Him, quiet our minds and deliberately listen to him. It is a choice that we have to make to hear Him. “Harken unto the Lord”
Seek is a verb – action. I am seeking God on certain issues and I realize that I had expected God to lead me even through the noise around me. I always say that God will lead me no matter what. This is true on the condition that we become quiet. We must give Him the respect and silence all other voices. The world, money and family issues will crowd our hearts and drive out the voice of the Lord. God does not compete for attention.
It is critical that all of us make regular times to hear the Lord. We should do this daily so that we do not run along in life without the Captain steering our ship. The Captain will steer the ship if we allow Him to, but if we don’t He will stand by and watch as we go the wrong way, until we cry out again and then He takes us back to where we went off course.
I want to challenge you to make the effort to spend time in the presence of God daily. I am learning this over the years that the more time we spend in His presence the more His fragrance rubs off on us and the more we get to know how He thinks. If we can know how He thinks we will know what to do in every situation. So, turn off the TV, or the computer, and turn on the Word of the Lord. Tune into God and allow His broadcast to reach your mind and your heart. Get rid of the noise that hinders the reception. God will show you great and awesome things and He will use you mightily if you will just give Him some time. AMEN..
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Give generously
Exodus 36:3-7
(3) And they received from Moses all the contribution that the people of Israel had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning,
(4) so that all the craftsmen who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task that he was doing,
(5) and said to Moses, "The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the LORD has commanded us to do."
(6) So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp, "Let no man or woman do anything more for the contribution for the sanctuary." So the people were restrained from bringing,
(7) for the material they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.
This account of the generous giving of the Israelites touched my heart so much when I read it. The people gave so freely and so much to the work of the Lord that Moses had to command them to stop. The amazing thing is that Moses did not threaten or manipulate them to give either. He just said that those who felt it in their hearts to give should bring it, not much fanfare. I was in a meeting once while at YWAM when we took an offering like that. It took almost half a day to complete the offering and people were bringing money, guitars, shoes, rings, clothes and even a car. It was so nice to give because everyone was obeying the Lord and you knew it was right. It was so glorious and we experienced God’s presence in a tangible way that day.
The children of Israel had come out of Egypt and were travelling through the desert with the stuff they could carry on their donkeys and oxen. They did not own real estate or big established businesses at the time and were actually just about 3 million refugees. This gold and diamonds and things that they brought for the tabernacle must have been very valuable to them as it was the only form of wealth they had, other than their livestock. These things were literally their nest egg that they kept for when they entered the Promised Land. It would be their start-up capital to rebuild their lives and businesses. Still, they were willing to give this up to the Lord.
What we must remember is that these were the Israelites who just finished worshipping the golden calf and who had to be reprimanded for their idolatrous lifestyle. These Israelites, not the most committed people, were willing to give so freely to God. Remember they had no experience of the infilling of the Holy Spirit as we have and they did not know Jesus Christ yet. They were raw out of Egypt and still had a lot of Egypt in them and still they gave so generously. Man, this touched me. Today, we are born again, filled with the Spirit and we know we are going to heaven and yet we cannot raise an offering like this in a church filled with people who have real estate, cars, investments and so on. I have seen the poor giving more generously than most affluent people in the wealthier congregations.
We have a problem today. People are more committed to their own welfare than to the work of the Lord. God faced the same issue when He said that the people of Israel were building their own houses while His house was lying in ruins. I have made a decision that I will dedicate my life for the building of the House of God, which is the church. I have given not only my material goods but also my career, my dreams and my energy to build the church. Where are you at my friend? Are you a generous giver to the work of the Lord or do you have to be manipulated out of your cents? I can only exhort you to be a generous giver; it is how God likes it. He loves a cheerful giver. 2 Cor 9:7
till all has heard..
skalla
(3) And they received from Moses all the contribution that the people of Israel had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning,
(4) so that all the craftsmen who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task that he was doing,
(5) and said to Moses, "The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the LORD has commanded us to do."
(6) So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp, "Let no man or woman do anything more for the contribution for the sanctuary." So the people were restrained from bringing,
(7) for the material they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.
This account of the generous giving of the Israelites touched my heart so much when I read it. The people gave so freely and so much to the work of the Lord that Moses had to command them to stop. The amazing thing is that Moses did not threaten or manipulate them to give either. He just said that those who felt it in their hearts to give should bring it, not much fanfare. I was in a meeting once while at YWAM when we took an offering like that. It took almost half a day to complete the offering and people were bringing money, guitars, shoes, rings, clothes and even a car. It was so nice to give because everyone was obeying the Lord and you knew it was right. It was so glorious and we experienced God’s presence in a tangible way that day.
The children of Israel had come out of Egypt and were travelling through the desert with the stuff they could carry on their donkeys and oxen. They did not own real estate or big established businesses at the time and were actually just about 3 million refugees. This gold and diamonds and things that they brought for the tabernacle must have been very valuable to them as it was the only form of wealth they had, other than their livestock. These things were literally their nest egg that they kept for when they entered the Promised Land. It would be their start-up capital to rebuild their lives and businesses. Still, they were willing to give this up to the Lord.
What we must remember is that these were the Israelites who just finished worshipping the golden calf and who had to be reprimanded for their idolatrous lifestyle. These Israelites, not the most committed people, were willing to give so freely to God. Remember they had no experience of the infilling of the Holy Spirit as we have and they did not know Jesus Christ yet. They were raw out of Egypt and still had a lot of Egypt in them and still they gave so generously. Man, this touched me. Today, we are born again, filled with the Spirit and we know we are going to heaven and yet we cannot raise an offering like this in a church filled with people who have real estate, cars, investments and so on. I have seen the poor giving more generously than most affluent people in the wealthier congregations.
We have a problem today. People are more committed to their own welfare than to the work of the Lord. God faced the same issue when He said that the people of Israel were building their own houses while His house was lying in ruins. I have made a decision that I will dedicate my life for the building of the House of God, which is the church. I have given not only my material goods but also my career, my dreams and my energy to build the church. Where are you at my friend? Are you a generous giver to the work of the Lord or do you have to be manipulated out of your cents? I can only exhort you to be a generous giver; it is how God likes it. He loves a cheerful giver. 2 Cor 9:7
till all has heard..
skalla
Monday, February 1, 2010
Cross the Red Sea
Exodus 14:11-16
(11) They said to Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt?
(12) Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness."
(13) And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.
(14) The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."
(15) The LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.
(16) Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground.
This account of the crossing of the Red Sea is so descriptive of our lives today. So many people answer to the call of God in their lives in a certain area and as they believe Him and start walking it out they get trapped against the Red Sea. For each one the Red Sea is different, but it represents a place of impossibility. You go in the direction God leads you and reach this place where things just does not want to work out for you, and to top it off you are being chased by Pharaoh. Pharaoh could be your creditors or other enemies that mock you for taking the steps of faith.
When you hit that wall those enemies will come charging and you will be tempted to submit and surrender to the Egyptians again. If you do you will go back to the slavery which you fled from and you will now be under more pressure as they are going to treat you even worse than before. Sometimes Pharaoh needs you so much that he will offer you a better salary or incentive to keep you working as his slave and because you hit that wall of impossibility you decide that it is better to eat the meat of the Egyptians than to starve in the desert in the face of your enemies.
No way, you need to go on my friend. Rather die in the desert fighting for freedom than submit to the Egyptians. This word could have a physical or spiritual meaning for you. For us it is the non-negotiable calling of the Lord upon our lives. Both my wife and I have been called by God to preach the gospel, Good News, to the nations. We also have businesses and sometimes when the money is slow in coming in we are tempted to just leave the ministry a bit on the back burner and rather pursue money making opportunities. The wonderful thing is that the calling upon our lives is so strong that we cannot get away from it for long and then we just experience this deep sense of urgency to return to the original call. The Egyptians will stand and accuse us, or put pressure on us to perform in a certain way and we have often been intimidated by this. We have come to a place where we are not intimidated anymore. We have decided that we will serve the Lord where He calls us. That includes the business world where we stand as ambassadors of the Kingdom of God.
Have you felt that you are not where God wants you and you wanted to get to the place of God’s will for your life and you just hit a wall? Have you returned and stopped fighting for your freedom? I believe this is the season where we have to pick up our staffs and point them at that Red Sea and walk in faith. God will open the Red Sea if you will just walk in faith. You might not know what it will hold in store for you, but you can know that God’s plans are always for you to prosper. So, as God said to Moses, “Stop crying and break up camp. Pick up and walk. Stop pitying yourself and stop worrying about Pharaoh and his soldiers. God is bigger than your enemy.”
Schalk Steyn
www.koinoniaoutreach.co.za
(11) They said to Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt?
(12) Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness."
(13) And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.
(14) The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."
(15) The LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.
(16) Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground.
This account of the crossing of the Red Sea is so descriptive of our lives today. So many people answer to the call of God in their lives in a certain area and as they believe Him and start walking it out they get trapped against the Red Sea. For each one the Red Sea is different, but it represents a place of impossibility. You go in the direction God leads you and reach this place where things just does not want to work out for you, and to top it off you are being chased by Pharaoh. Pharaoh could be your creditors or other enemies that mock you for taking the steps of faith.
When you hit that wall those enemies will come charging and you will be tempted to submit and surrender to the Egyptians again. If you do you will go back to the slavery which you fled from and you will now be under more pressure as they are going to treat you even worse than before. Sometimes Pharaoh needs you so much that he will offer you a better salary or incentive to keep you working as his slave and because you hit that wall of impossibility you decide that it is better to eat the meat of the Egyptians than to starve in the desert in the face of your enemies.
No way, you need to go on my friend. Rather die in the desert fighting for freedom than submit to the Egyptians. This word could have a physical or spiritual meaning for you. For us it is the non-negotiable calling of the Lord upon our lives. Both my wife and I have been called by God to preach the gospel, Good News, to the nations. We also have businesses and sometimes when the money is slow in coming in we are tempted to just leave the ministry a bit on the back burner and rather pursue money making opportunities. The wonderful thing is that the calling upon our lives is so strong that we cannot get away from it for long and then we just experience this deep sense of urgency to return to the original call. The Egyptians will stand and accuse us, or put pressure on us to perform in a certain way and we have often been intimidated by this. We have come to a place where we are not intimidated anymore. We have decided that we will serve the Lord where He calls us. That includes the business world where we stand as ambassadors of the Kingdom of God.
Have you felt that you are not where God wants you and you wanted to get to the place of God’s will for your life and you just hit a wall? Have you returned and stopped fighting for your freedom? I believe this is the season where we have to pick up our staffs and point them at that Red Sea and walk in faith. God will open the Red Sea if you will just walk in faith. You might not know what it will hold in store for you, but you can know that God’s plans are always for you to prosper. So, as God said to Moses, “Stop crying and break up camp. Pick up and walk. Stop pitying yourself and stop worrying about Pharaoh and his soldiers. God is bigger than your enemy.”
Schalk Steyn
www.koinoniaoutreach.co.za
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