* Love Makes It Easy

Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.  

(I Kings 8:61)

For this prayer, I would like to focus our attention on our commitment to God.  God has done such an awesome thing for us that we really do owe Him our all.  But God, being the God that He is; rich in grace and mercy, allows us the choice to decide whom we will serve. 

During Jesus final days on this earth, He left the disciples with a word of encouragement to keep them once His mission was fulfilled.  John records the following conversation Jesus had with His disciples: 

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe. Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.  John 14:26-31

When we put our total confidence in God, there is a peace that comes with it.  When we trust in God's word, we know that we are living this life to live eternally with our heavenly Father.   It puts everything else in its proper perspective!  Even as we do what's necessary to live this earthly life but our ultimate goal is to live again in heaven and so we should work continuously toward that goal.  Think of it as an investment plan that you're building up for a future time.  As you see your account building, your relationship growing in God, that brings peace and joy to you.  The only way that you can build that account is by being consistent in your commitment to God.  You can't miss payments if you want to see steady growth and receive dividends from your account.  Jesus said this thing is so simple:   

If you love me, you will keep my commandments  John 14:15  

God is so serious about His expectation of us.  He tells us in Matthew 22:37 that all He requires is that we love Him with all of our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind.   

As with any relationship, when we love someone with our all, it becomes easy to do that which is right by and pleasing to that person.  In this case, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Our love should triumph over any urge or desire to do anything contrary to God’s will or not do those things that God requires of us.  At some point, we have to become accountable for our actions and make that conscious decision that I’m going to serve God with all of my heart, my mind and my soul and then as Mark and Luke added, all of our strength; which means we give it more than lip service.  We serve God with all of our being.  It becomes more than a Sunday morning experience or praise service.

In the account of the children of Israel we’re reminded of what God had did for them and then instructed them to make a choice:   

And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and olive yards which ye planted not do ye eat. Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods; For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the
people through whom we passed:  Joshua 24:13-17

When I read this account in Joshua it reminds me of what Jesus did for us.  In verse 13 the children of Israel are told that all that they have obtained is what was promised to them and therefore they should serve God in sincerity and truth.  That was the plan for that dispensation; God delivered them out of captivity and placed them in the land that He had promised them.  When we reach the New Testament, God is still calling for those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth and just as he delivered the children of Israel out of bondage, He desires to deliver us out of the bondage of sin.  His word tells us in II Peter 3:9 that He does not desire and is not willing that any of us should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  He lets us know that He loves us in John 3:16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  And he tells us in Matthew 22:37 that all that He requires is that we love Him with all of our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind.   

God said let everything that has breath praise the lord; which means the sinner; the whoremonger, the thief, the drug addict can all give praise to God, but to those of us that have given our life to Him, we owe Him more than a praise!  We owe Him our life in active service to Him.  That takes me to Joshua verse 15 – as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!  The time is now to make up our minds, roll up our sleeves, stop being distracted by people and situations and serve the Lord in the manner that He requires!

So lets pray for a renewed, continuous commitment to God!

Dear Lord, we thank You for this day thus far.  We thank you for Your sovereignty in that You allowed us to wake up this morning.   

We thank you for the life You've given us, for our health and for our strength.  We thank You Lord for being in our right mind; for having a mind to serve You.  We thank You for one more opportunity to unite in prayer and supplication before You.  We come to You, heavenly Father, with thanksgiving in our hearts knowing that it is You and only You that is able to supply our every need; to equip us to run this race, to defeat everything that comes up against us, everything that is not like You and in so doing allow us to come out victoriously.

We thank You heavenly Father because there is a secret place in You where You hide us from our enemies.  We thank You God for Jesus who You sent here to save us and wash our sins away.  Through His blood, healing is available.  In the name of Jesus is the power to come up against every bad and evil thing that comes against us.  It is through Your Holy Spirit residing in us that we have the power to run this race. 

We thank You Lord because we have someone in You to call on when we’re in need.  

Lord, we ask, in the precious name of Jesus, that You right every wrong in our lives and that You propel us forward in You, that you position us in Your will; give us constant refreshing to lay aside every weight and every sin.  Touch us Lord, just a touch from You will make everything all right.  Regardless to what we see in the natural, give us faith to believe that in You everything is already alright.  Open our eyes Lord so we can see in the spirit the things that You have for us, the plan and the purpose You've designed for us.   We know Lord that we are not saved to sit but that we have a mighty work to do through You.  Workers are needed for Your vineyard; prepare us Lord. 

Help us, dear Lord, to strive for mastery in this race; for endurance to remain to the end.     Help us Lord to bring and keep our mind and our bodies under subjection to Your will; help us to change our mindset to have Your mind; knowing that Your will is good, it is perfect, and it is acceptable; that You are the final authority in our lives.  

Lord, You said in Your word that You know the thoughts that You have for us; thoughts of good and not of evil.  Help us Lord to see what You have for us and to walk in that direction.  Help us Dear Lord to make the right choice; that is to choose You in all of our ways.  Our heart says yes Lord, we will serve You and it will not be a duty or an obligation but a lifestyle!

In your word, You tell us that the battle is not ours, that it belongs to You.  Lord help us to trust You and stand firmly on Your word; to place ourselves squarely on the solid rock so we’re not so easily shaken when the storms of life come upon us.

 

Give us a mindset to say ‘use me Lord, if You need someone, Lord, send me, I’ll go!  

For all Your many benefits unto us, we owe You Lord, though we can never repay You for all that You've done for us – all we can do is give You a yes and be obedient to You and Your word.  Lord You've given us everything in Your word to keep us and sustain us, You've given us Your precious gift of Your holy spirit and You said If we delight ourselves in You that You will give us the desires of our heart, You said if we commit our ways unto You and trust You that You will bring to pass those things that You have declared.  Because You said it in Your word, Lord, we believe it.   And if our faith is not where it should be in You, Lord, I pray that You help our unbelief!

If ever we needed You, Lord it’s now - even as we wait on and receive instruction from You.  Open our heart and ears to hear and receive Your word.  You are our precious redeemer, and we pray that You bind us closer Lord to You Every hour of every day.  We pray that You send Your power, because we can’t make it without You and we can’t do it without You.   Lord, help us to be strong and of good courage knowing that You will never leave us nor forsake us.  You’ll be with us, You will lead us and guide us in the direction that we’re to take.

Lord we acknowledge before You that we just can’t do without You, we can’t win without You, we need Your power and Your strength.  We realize that it is no goodness of our own; nothing that we can say or do,  but it's You Lord, in your sovereignty, that keeps us and allows us to accomplish Your will in our lives.

Help us, oh Lord, to stay on the path that You have set before us; not veering to the left or to the right.  Help us Lord to meditate on You and Your word day and night.  Help us Lord even as we meditate on You, to hide Your word in our hearts so that we won’t sin against You.  Help us to keep our focus on You; You said Lord in all of our ways to acknowledge You and You will direct our path. 

And now, Lord we pray that You continue to be with us, that You lead us and guide us, give us wisdom and knowledge to speak and act according to Your will.  Help us to walk upright before You, help us to present ourselves to a dying world as ambassadors, as beacons on a hill, as shining lights, and servants;  all for Your manifested glory; never forgetting that we are saved to help save and to be a blessing to others.  

We ask all these things and we thank You for all things, in the precious name of Jesus, Amen

In closing, I want to leave this final scripture with you:

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable,  always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.  (I Corinthians 15:58)

The Message bible states it like this:

(With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort. – I Corinthians 15:58 - The message)

Peace and Blessings to You,

I am a SERVANT of God,

Candy H.

12/09/15