"His grace give us good thing"

"He calls his own sheep by name and lead them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice."
John10:3-4

His grace, He gives us good thing every day in our lives...Ever get feeling you're somewhere out in front of God as you move through your week?:You bump up against a trial, and you know from scripture that God is going to work all thing for good, but some how you have the idea He's behind you, armed with a dustpan and broom, ready to do a clean up job o you and your problem.
   Or perhaps you imagine God standing a few paces back with a bottles of glue, ready to pick up the broken pieces of your life and paste them back together. Or do you image Him with hammer and nails ready to follow after you and do a patch-up job should things fall apart? If you feel as though God's principal activity in your life is to follow behind you and throw a rope after you're fallen headlong into a trial, then you need to memorize the verse of your circumstances. A shepherd never follows his flock, he lead them. Jesus Himself says that He goes on ahead. He blazes a straight path and chart the way.
   Never is God surprised by your trials. Never does He push you out ahead and back you up with a dustpan and broom. God is out in front. In fact, God totally encompasses you, front, sides, and rear guard. As it say in Psalm 139: 5-6, "You hem me in- behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me too lofty for me to attain." Because His grace give us good things this year 2018.

Remember: Take Your Place

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things, which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection in thing above, not on thing on the earth.
Colossians 3:1-2

The elevation of the believer to be seated with Christ at the right hand of the Father took place potentially at the resurrection (Eph 2:5,6). Mediate on this passage until it becomes real to you. Remember, every heavenly blessing is your (Eph. 1:3). But you have to take your place there to enjoy them. The believer whose eye have been opened to his throne right in Christ may:
1. Accept his seat, and
2. Begin to exercise the spiritual authority that seating confers on him.
    The devil bitterly resents our entrance into his domain. He has been used to exercising authority and ruling over someone's life, so he will concentrate his forces against us when we come into these nighty truths. And no truth encounters such opposition as the truth of the authority of the believer!.
     The only place of safety is to be seated with Christ in heavenly places, far above all principality. Power, night, and dominion. If the believer abides steadfastly, by faith, in this place, he cannot be touched by the enemy. So take your seat in heavenly places and used it. His promises is yes and Amen.

Our Wonderful Counselor

And ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power. . . Buried with Him the Baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation with God, who hath raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcised of your flesh, hath be quicken together with Him. . ..
COLOSSIANS 2:10

Notice the expression "through faith of the operation of God." Jesus was quickened (made alive) by faith of the operation of God and we were made alive at the same time. It was God who raised Jesus from the dead. It was God who gave Jesus a Name above every name. It was God who blotted out "the handwriting of ordinances" against us, took it out of the way and nailed it to His cross (Col. 2:14). It was God who stripped the powers of darkness of their authority and handed it to the Son (Col.2:15). And it was God who quickened us "together with Him."
   In the mind of God, legally speaking, it was when Jesus was quickened and made alive, that we were recreated. "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus. . . " (Eph. 2:10). This fact of our recreation becomes a vital reality in our lives when we were individual born again (made new creatures).
    Raised with Christ! Quickened with Him! Seated with Him! (Eph.2:4-6).

He heard us!

But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer
Psalm 66:19

People have remembered John's phrase "according to his will," and they thought they had to pray, "Lord, do this or that, if it be thy will," But inserted this expression into a prayer when God's Word already states that what we're  praying for is his will is confessing that we don't believe God's Word. And that kind of prayer will not work. How can we find out what God's will is?
God word is His Will! We can find out God's will for us in the Bible because the Bible is God's Will, His covenant and His Testament. And it is God's will for us to have whatever God has provided for us!
    First we must find the Scriptures that reveal God's will for us. Then we can go before God with great boldness:". . this is the CONFIDENCE that we have in Him... "When we prayed for things that God's Word tell us are His will, we know we have the Petition we ask of Him. We know we have them, He do it for me.  praise be to God!

Sign post: Determining What Comes First

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
MATTHEW 6:33

Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the Kingdom  of dear Son.  In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.: who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible  and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions, or principalities or power; all things were created by him and for him. And he is before all thing, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body. The church: who Is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Colossians 1:13-18; and read Luke 14: 15-33.
  Robert Frost's poem "The road Not Taken" describe two roads discovered during a walk in the woods. Frost knows he can only explore one, and he tells himself that someday he will travel the other. But, realistically, he knows he will never return. And by the time we reach the end of the poem, we realize the poet is talking about something infinitely more important than a simple choice of paths.
  I shall be telling this with a sigh
  Somewhere ages and ages hence:
  Two road diverged in a wood, and I...
  I took the one made all the difference
No, Frost is not talking about the choice of paths in a wood, but the choice of the paths in a person's life. Choosing a road Symbolizes any choices we must make between alternatives that appear equally attractive but lead to entirely different destinations. Whether you arrive at excellence or mediocrity depends upon the choice you make at the crossroads and your priorities will function as signposts to help you determine which road you will travel

THE EARTH IS FULL OF GLORY

IN THE YEAR OF king Uzziah's death, I saw  the Lord sitting in a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he coveted his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts, "The whole earth is full of His Glory..
Isaiah 6:1-3

It's TIME TO DIG DEEPER into the mysterious will of God. In doing so, we must come to terms with our age-old, inescapable battle with sin Can God's will result in our being holy? Isaiah sees and records something that appears nowhere else in the bible the seraphim, a body of Worshiping angelic creatures, surrounding the Lord. Seraphs, mentioned only here in Isaiah 6:2 and 6:6 are heavenly beings that resemble flaming fire in their person. I say that because the Hebrew word sarap mean " to burn." It's the same word that is used to describe the fiery serpents that bit the children of Israel in the days of Moses (see Number 21:4-9). So these are hovering angels, perhaps blazing like fire, or so full of zeal they become fire like in their worship. They surround the throne of God, ministering to Him in continual praise.
  Isaiah does not tell us how many there were. Maybe there were hundreds, maybe dozens, maybe only few, but "each had six wings" and stood above the Lord, swarming about His throne with their zealous and dramatic expression of praise. In this amazing scene, Isaiah is allowed to draw back the curtain of heaven and catch just a glimpse of angelic creation and their activities. There are activities that go on incessantly in the highest heaven, which we never see their adoration and praise of a holy God. Not only could Isaiah see all this, he could hear the antiphonal voices in which they were worshiping, one calling to another, back and forth: "Holy, Holy, Holy," Some have interpreted this to mean the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit. I think rather, it is a reference to the Lord's infinite holiness. When words are repeated in the Hebrew text it is for emphasis, and rarely are words repeated three times. Here, this repetition conveys infinite exaltation. "Incredible holiness is due Your Name, O Lord God of Hosts. The Earth is full of Your glory." Again and again, these mysterious seraphim called our such praises to one another.
   In earthly terms, with the Israelites burning incense on the high place, worshiping like their pagan  neighbors, the earth was not marked by evident glory. But from the Seraphim's viewpoint in the throne rooms of God, the earth is full of God's glory. Don't forget that. Our newspapers will never report angelic praise. They tell nothing of the glory of God. They only tell what is occurring on the horizontal plane, and as you knows, they focus mainly on the bad news. But the the earth will one day be full of God's glory. Don't doubts it, our current surroundings will ultimately be removed, and they will be replaced by that which evidences the glory of God. But for a moment, Isaiah was caught up in a scene that other people couldn't see:

EARWORMS

If there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy.... Mediate on these  things.
Philippians 4:8

They burrows. They bore in. They attach themselves inside your head. Earworms, a term once used exclusively for insects. Is now the name for those unrelenting tuned that you can't get out of your head. Songs like. "The Lion sleeps Tonight," the "Barney" song, or my personal nightmare: "it is a small world after all.'
    They say the only way to rid yourself of the insidious infestation is to replaced it with another tune "your cleaner's song. New words and a fresh tune can crowd out the old.
    Maybe we could use a cleaner song for our thought-life as well. When lustful or vengeful thoughts creep into our minds, reading and mediating on God:s word can help to clean up our thinking.
   Scripture tells us to love the Lord " with all your heart, with all [our] soul with all [our] mind" (Matt. 22:37) and not to "be conformed to this world." But to be transformed by the renewing of [our] mind" (Rom.12:21). It instructs us to think about things that are true. Noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable excellent and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8).
    When our minds wander to evil, the best "cleaner' is allow the wisdom of the Bible to permeate our thoughts and hearts Tim. 3:16).

A GREAT PLACE TO LEARN

Let us rejoice and be glad: let us praise his greatness! For the time has come for the wedding of the Lamb, and  his bride has prepared herself for it. She has been given clean shining linen to wear." (The linen is the good deeds of God's people). Then the Angel said to me "write this Happy are those who have been invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb." And the angel added, "These are the true words of God.
Revelation 19:7-9

Have you noticed that one of the best times for learning is mealtime? Sharing food together break down barriers and starts meaningful conversations. A professor, for example, can teach passionately in a lecture hall and inspire little more reaction than a few sleepy nods. But put those students around the same professor in a dining hall, and they're asking question, chewing on issues, and gulping down concepts faster than he can dish them out.
   Jesus, the consummate teacher, certainly seems to have  understood this concept. Just think how many of the significant lessons in Luke and the other gospels...took place over a banquet table or at a hillside picnic.
   For instance, do you know where He performed His first miracle? At a wedding feast in Cana (John 2:1-11). And what about the time He took the little boy's loaves and fishes and turn them into lunch for five thousand (Luke 9:10-17! And then there's His memorable moment in Martha kitchen, when He turned down the heat under her boiling frustration and offer her a cool sip of His peace (Luke 10:38-42). Then later, at the same house, He gave a lesson on the value of costly worship when Mary anointed His feet with perfume during a meal (John12:2-8).
   And who could forget the most famous meal in the gospels, the Last Supper (John 13-17). Gathering around  that table, the disciples surely savored every morsel Jesus served. It was a feast of unforgettable lesson in servanthood, leadership abiding in Christ, loving one another, the Holy Spirit, and the future. The nourishment of that meal would have to last them through the lean, hungry, and horrible days ahead until after His resurrection, when they would eat with Jesus again on the shore of Galilee and witness His encouragement of Simon Peter (John21).
   Looking into the future, we see another meal the glorious "marriage supper of the Lamb" (Rev.19:7-9). In that day, we'll be dressed as Christ's perfect bride in the bright and clean linen of righteousness. We'll join Him in a celestial celebration that will last forever. What a meal that will be! So when we find Jesus in Luke 14 sitting down for dinner, we're not surprised that He takes this setting as an opportunity to serve up some memorable lesson that we're calling "spiritual table manner.

DISCIPLINE YOUR MIND

Therefore gird up the loins of your mind be sober, and rest yours hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1PETER 1:13

Your mind is a wonderful thing! You can memorize life changing passage of Scripture that can undergird you in your daily life, you can mediate upon God's Word, discovering His magnificent truths; you can discern truth and falsehood; you can recall God's past blessings.
   Some of God's most effective servants were those who disciplined theirs mind for His service. Moses educated in the best school of Egypt, assembled the book of the Law for the Israelites. Isaiah used his scholarly mind to write and exalted prophetic book in Scripture. Paul learned under Gamaliel, the outstanding teacher if his day, and it was through Paul that God presented much if the theology found in the New Testament.
    Sadly, many Christians today do not exercise theirs mind ttheto be of service to God. They allow others to do their spiritual thinking for them. If they can find their theology from a book, they will not bother to study God's Word themselves. If a speaker makes an authoritative statement, they readily accept it without verifying whether it is biblical.
   Paul urged Christian  to strive for maturity in their thinking (1 Cor.14-20). He said there was a time when his spiritual thinking was immature, but he had prepared his mind to know and understand the great truths of God (1 Cor. 13:11(. He had not allowed others to do his thinking for him. When you became a Christian, God renewed your mind (Rom 12:2_ Be certain to use your mind in a way that bring glory to God.