“Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.” Psalms 31:5
There is a story of a lawyer who was trying to deliver an important document to a man. Thinking it was a subpoena, the man avoided the attorney at all cost. But this was a very persistent attorney, and he wouldn’t give up.
This went on for many years, until the man ended up in the hospital, dying of a serious illness. As he was lying on his death bed, the lawyer walked up next to him with the document in hand. The man said, “I can’t run from you anymore. I’m dying. Just give me the subpoena.”
“What subpoena?” the lawyer asked. “I have a document here to prove that you’ve inherited $20 million dollars!”
That is how it is when we run from God. We’re saying, “Get away from me, God, I don’t want your forgiveness, your love, and your mercy. I don’t want your blessings. I want to live the way I want to live.”
People run from God for all kinds of reasons. Maybe it’s because we think God has abandoned us. Or maybe we run from God because of pride and rebellion. Some run because they’ve been hurt. Others run because they’re scared. The reason we run is because we believe the lie that God’s presence is not best for us.
Instead of running away from God we need to run to Him. God loves you and wants to help you. God forgives you and extends mercy and grace when we don’t deserve it. Don’t be like the man in the story who ran for so long that he ended up missing out on a great blessing. Don’t miss out on the best things God has to offer.
Pray
Lord, I run to you and you only. Into your hand I commit my spirit. Forgive me for not trusting you more.
Last month I had a new word come to me. It came into my life at the right time.
The word that came to me was “specific”. Yes that’s the word that I’ve been concentrating on for several weeks now. Let me explain how it’s been used in my life.
Back in the middle of December my wife and I were on our way to do some Christmas shopping for the girls, specifically to Target. When we pulled into the parking lot, I finally realized that I had received a word from the Lord.
It had been a busy time in my life with lots of things happening all at once. Planning Christmas activities at the church, keeping track of spending, balancing family and work, ministering to people outside of the church family and keeping everyone happy!
It was perfect timing because I needed the Lord to help keep me on target. For the most part I speak in general terms and sometimes I forget the importance of speaking direct, informative, and decisive words.
Let Me Be More Specific
My wife and I would have an important conversation about what’s for dinner. Yes that’s one of the most important conversations of the day. She would ask, “What would you like to eat for dinner?” And my response would be very generalized with, “It doesn’t matter?” Sound familiar?
Here’s the problem, I know what I want and I know what I don’t want. I want Mexican food, hamburgers, meatloaf, pizza, or anything chicken. What I don’t want is a meal with no meat. Sure I like vegetables but I want some type of meat for the main dish. My wife could eat broccoli and cauliflower and call it dinner. Nope, not me. I want a slab of ribs, a hamburger steak, or even some smoked sausage if we are going to eat broccoli and cauliflower for dinner. More meat than vegetables of course.
So I’ve noticed lately that I needed to be more specific with my words and my intentions. I need to use words that communicate exactly what I want to say or else I might end up a vegetarian!
Even More Specific
A close friend of mine called me late on a Sunday night and said that her mother was very sick and very close to dying. She was in the hospital and unresponsive. She needed some advice on what to do if her mother did pass away. So we talked and I continued to pray for her and her mother.
The next day I received the phone call that her mother passed early in the morning hours and asked if I would officiate her mother’s funeral. Of course I agreed.
Funeral services are very special to me. It’s a time of deep spiritual reflection and the words I speak in a funeral message can give hope to the hurting and comfort to the suffering. So I’m very prayerful of what message to preach and what Bible verses to use. Every funeral is different.
So during this process of praying about what verses and words to speak the Lord revealed to me that He had already given me the word to speak. It was specific.
Specifically In The Word
So I prepared a message centered around Psalm 23 when David started the first verse by saying, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalms 23:1 NKJV) It’s very familiar, but David is very specific.
Let me break it down for us. David said, “the LORD”. We know specifically that God was his only LORD, master, savior, and comforter. That’s not only personal but it’s specific. David didn’t say, “a higher being” or “the big man up stairs,” he said, “the LORD is my shepherd.”
A shepherd is someone who takes on the responsibilities of overseeing the care of sheep. Nurturing, protecting, and caring are some of the duties. But David was even more specific when he said, “the LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Do you see it?
David looked to the LORD for everything and received everything he was in need of. He did not lack because the LORD provided, protected, and personalized everything for him.
So I used this message for the funeral. I preached the entire 23rd Psalm with intentions of being specific. I encouraged the family and friends at the funeral to be intentional and specific with their words as well.
Sometimes we are not intentional and specific with others. For example we love the people who are close to us. But do we specifically tell them that we love them or do we generalize it and hope they know it?
God Spoke Specifically, So Why Not Me
I have learned over the past few weeks to speak more specifically in order to communicate more decisively and effectively. It’s helped me tremendously.
When God speaks, He speaks specifically. Do some research yourself and see how God spoke directly and specifically to the people in the Bible.
I know that God spoke this word into my life for a specific reason. It’s not a theological term or even a “churchy” word, but it was for me, specifically. I’ve built this word and it’s meaning into my personal life and behavior and now I see a difference.
Have you received a word from the Lord? Have you received a special revelation from God about something? I would love to hear from you. Email me at pastor@livingwordbaptist.net.
‘The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.’ Psalms 14:2
When God looks down from heaven, one thing He looks for is if there are people who understand His heart and seek after Him for righteousness sake. He’s not looking for people who are smart enough to figure Him out. He looks to see who has a moral and spiritual awareness.
As we transition from Christmas celebrations to New Year’s resolutions, it’s fair to say that we look forward to something new. 2021 will definitely be a year of transition. We will be transitioning from old ways and developing new methods.
We have the opportunity to set our hearts toward God. Once we seek after the heart of God we can be certain that God will align our paths and keep us in His perfect will. God notices those who seek after Him.
Let this be a time of transition. Transition your heart from what’s not important to the things that matter most to God. Allow God to speak to your heart about the things that need to happen for His glory.
Pray
Lord, I know you see my heart and You know my mind. Help me to establish behaviors that bless Your name. Keep me in Your ways and purposes.
