Pastor Stephen Dedman

Category: Encouragement

In The Likeness Of Jesus

Encouragement

“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26

One of the greatest blessings of being a Christian is knowing that God sees the righteousness of Jesus when He looks upon those who believe in Him. He doesn’t see our faults and failures; He sees the righteousness of Jesus that has been gifted to us.

Some people mistakenly believe that God is only pleased with them when they do good deeds. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. God is pleased with you and only wants good things for you.

God is never ashamed of your imperfections. He desires to bless you and give you peace. He wants you to be made perfect only through Jesus Christ.

If you want to understand who you are through Jesus Christ you need to recognize that God is perfecting you through His Son. Pauls said it this way, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” (Philippians 3:12)

We are far from perfect. But everyday we should strive to be more like Jesus. Jesus makes all things new!

Pray

Lord, thank You for giving me Jesus. I look forward to being more like You everyday. Help me to understand that I am being perfected through the works of Jesus.

With All Your Heart

Encouragement

Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and true before the Lord his God. And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart. So he prospered.
II Chronicles 31:20-21

God will honor the heart that commits to follow Him. God is pleased to bless those who strive to please Him. So the surest way to prosper is to pursue the will of God.

Hezekiah, king of Judah, lived during a dangerous time. He faced very powerful enemies. Pagan and idol worship was the popular religion of the day. Even his parents rejected God and encouraged others to serve false gods.

Hezekiah had the opportunity to reject God as well yet he chose to serve God with all of his heart. He did everything in his power to encourage the people to worship the One and true God. He showed honor and respect to God by keeping His commandments.

Because Hezekiah served and obeyed God, God blessed him in return. God proved to the people that it is beneficial and prosperous to serve and obey God. Even when it was not the popular thing to do, Hezekiah resolved to follow God.

It takes courage and commitment to seek after God rather than pleasing people. When you do not set your heart to seek after the Lord, calamity and chaos fill your life. Resolve to pursue God with all your heart and receive the peace and prosperity that follow.

Pray

Lord, I seek You with all of my heart, soul, and mind. I desire to obey Your word and I strive to remain in Your will. I seek to please You only.

Do You Want The Blessings Of God?

Encouragement

One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.” So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.
Acts 13:2-3

On this certain day, the Holy Spirit got a hold of these men. They were in a position to hear from the Lord. They were ready to receive a word from the Lord. The text says that they worshiped and fasted and then they fasted and prayed. Sounds like a lot of fasting was going on.

Presumably, they fasted because they were seeking God in a specific way. According to the text, it’s possible that they were seeking God for a direction to go and spread the Gospel. Their desire was to please the Lord.

God will use people who are committed to prayer. The Holy Spirit will speak to our hearts when we focus on the things of God to the point of desiring nothing but His presence.

The act of worship is necessary for our souls as well as pleasing to the Lord. True worship will change our hearts and align our thoughts for the things of God. Worship is a sincere way to seek the heart of God.

If we want the Lord to speak to our hearts we must worship Him. Worship entails praising, praying, listening, and honoring God. Sometimes people will lift their hands up high in worship because they are surrendering themselves to God.

What are you seeking God for today? If the Lord is not answering your prayers you need to consider worshiping and fasting and then fasting and praying. This is the process of positioning yourself to the blessings of God.

Pray

Lord, I want to hear from You. I seek you today to answer my prayer. You know my heart and You know my desires. Allow me to worship You will all of my heart today.