In whom the LORD is pleased...

...s(he) will be loaded down with responsibilities !

Isaiah 22: 19-25, "Yes, I will drive you out of office," says the LORD.  " I will  pull you down from your high position.  and then I will call on my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah to replace you.  He will have your royal robes, your title, and your authority.  And he will be a father to the people of Jerusalem and Judah.  I will give him the key to the house of David - the highest position in the royal court.  He will open doors and no one will be able to shut them; he will close doors, and no one will be able to open them.  He will bring honor to his family name, for I will drive him firmly in place like a tent stake.  He will be loaded down with responsibility, and he will bring honor to even the lowliest members of his family."  

The LORD Almighty says: " When that time comes, I will pull out the stake that seemed so firm.  It will come out and fall to the ground.  Everything it supports will fall with it.  I, the LORD, have spoken!"

These were prophet Isaiah's words against Shebna, a high official in the court of King Hezekiah of Judah. Shebna was a man of great influence, but here the prophet was predicting that he would fall from power and die as an outcast because of his pride. In his place the Lord was going to appoint his humble servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah.  This scripture caught my attention while I was going through a turbulent period in my life.  God's promise to Eliakim is what caught my eye. He said about Eliakim, "He will bring honor to his family name, for I will drive him firmly in place like a tent stake.  He will be loaded down with responsibility, and he will bring honor to even the lowliest members of his family."

This scripture that Isaiah wrote opened up to me through the life of David whom God called from the sheep pens to be the next king of Israel and Judah.  Here was a shepherd boy who did not amount to much in the eyes of his father or brothers, but that's who God called on.  Here was a shepherd boy who had to take on the responsibilities of governing a combined nation of Judah and Israel.  Even though the shepherd boy David was anointed by Prophet Samuel to be the next king, we read in the books of  1 & 2 Samuel  that David's life was in constant danger from King Saul's jealousy.  There were many a nights God's anointed next king of Judah and Israel, David, slept in the open fields covered in dust and dew looking up at the night sky wondering what the meaning of the anointing was, wondering if there was any truth in what Prophet Samuel told him.  But we read that through all dangers and threats on David's life, God kept him safe and fulfilled his promise to make him the next king.  God loved David, and he loaded him down with responsibilities. God did for him what he told Eliakim, drove David down in to the ground like a tent stake, anchored him on bedrock, so that he held up under all the fury of the wind that blew against his life.  God strengthened David and encouraged him when at times all seemed lost, enabling him to withstand the fury of King Saul's assault on his life.  Through David, God brought honor to his family, he brought honor to the lowliest member of his family.  Yes, through David, even the lowly shepherd boys, who didn't amount to much in the eyes of the world can dream of greatness.  He brought honor not only to his family, but every single person in his situation, who are forgotten, whom the world pushes aside, whom the world discounts!

Whom God loves, there will be much asked of that person.  Reminds me of Christ, God's son, weighed down  with the responsibility for the redemption of mankind. Just before Jesus was betrayed by Judas, we read in Luke 22:41, "He walked away, about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, "Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me.  Yet I want your will, not mine."  Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him.  He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood."  Today, my savior Christ has dulled Father God's anger towards everything that is wrong about me because of what he endured for me.  God drove Christ down firmly into the ground like a tent stake so that he could take upon him all the punishment that could be dished out by man and God, and give me a new life.  There also was Paul, appointed by Christ as the Apostle to the Gentiles who took the message of the cross to the world at a tremendous personal cost.  As Isaiah said, in whom God is pleased, s(he) will be weighed down with much responsibilities. If you think you are having hard times, you are in good company!  God will guide you and strengthen you for his name's sake, for it is his promise!

“I know God will not give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish that He didn’t trust me so much.” - Mother Teresa

Brooke Fraser - Lifeline

Five loaves and two fishes

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand (Mathew 14)

13 As soon as Jesus heard the news [aboutJohn the Baptist's death], he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns.

¹⁴ Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
¹⁵ That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.”
¹⁶ But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.”
¹⁷ “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered.
¹⁸ “Bring them here,” he said.
¹⁹ Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people.
²⁰ They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.
²¹ About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!

For an omniscient, omnipotent,and omnipresent God, why would Christ ask his disciples to bring the food they had with them? Why did he not just command the angels to feed the multitudes or just create from nothing? And once the disciples brought the five loaves and two fishes to him, he took it, looked up to heaven, gave thanks, then breaking them into pieces he gave to the disciples to distribute. For a God who is able to create something out of nothing, he requires that you bring what you have to address the need at hand to whatever capacity; be thankful to the Lord for what you have, however much (less) it is. Use it, what you have, and he will continue to provide more to meet your needs.

This passage from the Bible became very personal to me one night about a year or more ago. I had been under a lot of debt - credit cards & auto loans, and needed money to meet our daily/monthly needs - rent, utilities, etc. Even though every month following payments for that months bills, my wife and I would make a commitment to reduce our spending or spend within our means, we would find ourselves in the same boat towards the end of the following month.  We were not living a lavish lifestyle by any means, at the same time we were not spendthrifts. One night, "the bill payment night", which was always a stressful time, after looking through all the bills, I was kind of down, and then became angry at myself and anyone else within earshot of me.  As I sat down to pay the bills, I sat there in front of my computer, with my head in my hands, asking God if this was how it was going to be. I complained to him that it had to be better. I complained that I shouldn't have to live month to month wondering how I was going to pay off all my debts.  As I sat there past midnight with all kinds of emotions welling up inside of me, God started to show me the foolishness of my ways.  I was asking for money to pay off my debts while I had set aside some in an investment account to play the stock market. It was just sitting there going nowhere. Here I was asking God for more while doing the same as the servant who buried the one talent he received from the master. Without thinking much, that same night I put in a market sell order for all the shares that I owned.  There was enough to pay off most of the outstanding debts.  There I was with that stress off my little head. The story gets better ...

A week or two later I took a peek at the share prices of the companies that I had sold, and it was incredulous to see what I was seeing. Everything that I had owned was in the pits though they were blue chip stocks, including AIG.  If I had held on to the shares, the account would've been at 1/20th or less as the market had taken a tremendous dive following the sale of the shares.  I sat there thanking God for that stressful night when he led me to that decision to just sell everything I had and pay off my debts.  (This was kind of forgotten money!) God has a way of getting our attention before we fall off a cliff.  It taught me to look at what I had before I complained to God or asked for more. He wants us to use the five loaves and two fishes that he has already provided us, and be thankful for it as we ask for more. As new needs arise, he is able to provide us more in ways we cannot ever imagine.  Just ask apostle Peter when he went to Christ Jesus for money to pay the temple tax.  Jesus asked him to go and throw a line to catch a fish, and the money for the temple tax would be in the first fish he caught.  Sure enough, Peter found a silver coin in the first fish he caught, with which he paid the taxes. (Mathew 17:24-27)

There are many other parables in the bible that Christ used and miracles he performed, that show that we have to be active participants or contributors to the process rather than just spectators. He is not a God who promotes sheer laziness! He will part the Red Sea for you if there is not already a way for you to cross it.  He may not stop your enemy from having you thrown in to the lion's den, yet he is able to shut the lions' mouth from harming you as he did for Daniel.  He may not stop your enemy from binding you and throwing you into the fiery pit, but he will step into the fire with you and untie your bondage and preserve your life as he did for Shadrach, Meshech and Abednego.  He may even let your enemy put into motion a solid plan to end your life as for Mordecai (in the book of Esther), but at the right time he will inspire others to come to your assistance through supernatural ways, as he aroused in King Xerxes' a desire to know who Mordecai was and put in motion all that was needed to preserve Mordecai's life and bring him honor.  All these men had prayerful lives, did the will of God, yet they faced tremendous dangers in life.  They had stress in their lives! They had sleepless, worrisome nights, I am sure! But, God was keenly aware of their situation, their needs and provided according to their needs at the right time.

So don't hoard the five loaves and two fishes that God has given you. Use it, share it. And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which has been given to us in Christ Jesus ( wrote apostle Paul to the Philippians in Philippians 4:19).  For God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we could ask or think. (Ephesians 3:20) God bless you !!!

The Staff of God in Moses' hands is the prayer in yours

Charlton Heston as Moses

As I was reading Exodus, chapter 17 and meditating on the Word of God, the Holy Spirit put some thoughts in my heart that I want to share here. The chapter talks of two of the many experiences of Moses and the Israelites during their 40 years journey through the desert following their release from slavery under the Pharaoh of Egypt.

We read of a time when the Israelites had been wandering in the desert for a long period and were very, very, thirsty.  There was no water to be found anywhere.  They complained to Moses and grumbled that they were better off in slavery under the Pharaoh.  Exodus 17:3 says, "But tormented by thirst, they continued to complain, "Why did you bring us here? We, our children, and our livestock will all die!"  They were ready to attack Moses and he pleaded with God for water. Then Moses pleaded with the LORD, "They are about to stone me!"  The Lord said to Moses, "Take your shepherd's staff, the one you used when  you struck the water of the Nile.  Then call some of the leaders of Israel and walk on ahead of the people,  I will meet you by the rock at Mount Sinai. Strike the rock. and water will come pouring out.  The the people will be able to drink."  Moses did just as he was told; and as the leaders looked on, water gushed out.

{Just a thought! Would you think Moses was stressed during the times he was leading the Israelites?  He was responsible for an entire nation, mostly unthankful people who grumbled and complained at every opportunity. This was God's chosen servant to whom God himself appeared and spoke directly! This is why in the New Testament, we read time and again, this walk in Christ is a walk of Faith. Refer to Hebrews, chapter 11, for examples of men of great Faith from the old testament.}

The second incident noted in this chapter is the Israelites fight with the army of the Amalek. Moses commanded Joshua, " Call the Israelites to arms, and fight the army of Amalek.  Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand." We read that as long as Moses held up the staff with his hands, the Israelites had the advantage.  But whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites gained the upper hand.  Moses arms finally became too tired to hold up the staff any longer.  So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on.  Then they stood on each side, holding up his hands until sunset.  As a result, Joshua and his troops were able to crush the army of Amalek.  Similarly, we read in Exodus, chapter 14, when Moses and the Israelites were at the Red Sea, he stretched out the staff over the waters of the Red sea and it parted offering them a safe route of escape from the fast approaching Pharaoh's army.

As I was reading the chapter I couldn't help but think back to the time when my grandfather was alive. He was a praying man, who morning and evening had family prayers (and I'm sure other times when no one was watching) upholding all his children, grandchildren, great grand children and anyone one else who was in need of prayers.  I had written previously how following his death, misfortune started visiting our families. It just hit me - the Staff of God in Moses hands was the Prayer in Faith, the intercessory prayers, my grandfather prayed to God for his loved ones and difficult situations in life.  As long as Moses' hands held up the Staff of God, Joshua and the Israelites had victory. When his hand  was lowered, the Amalekites gained advantage. In our family, with my grandfather's passing the staff of God - his intercessory prayers on our behalf was no more. The Amalekites in our lives gained advantage. Misfortune after misfortune affected many of our families. When it came to the children and grandchildren, our faith and our prayer life had much to be desired compared to my grandfather.

Look !!! You out there !!!. The grandfathers... grandmothers... fathers... mothers... you are the Moses', the Aarons and the Hurs of your family and your community. Every father / husband is the Moses for his family.  If you are a single mother, you are the Moses! When you are living out your desert experiences, your children seem uncaring, unloving, disobedient and not wanting to listen to you, are grumbling because you can't meet their new wants or needs, life seems to be a constant struggle, lift up your prayers in faith to the God Almighty, he will keep the Amalekites of your family life at bay and guide you to victory.  Surround yourself with a couple of good friends (the Aarons and the Hurs) who have the same values as yourself who will hold you up in prayer when you get tired (even as Aaron and Hur did as Moses' hands got tired) and become prayer warriors! You will see the Amalekites in your life routed! For He is Yahweh Nissi!

Hillsongs - the desert song

The Word of God will achieve it's purpose

Isaiah 55:11 (NIV) says,

11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:

It will not return to me empty, 

but will accomplish what I desire 

and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Every New Year's eve our church has a tradition of having a year end service celebrating God's grace that kept everyone throughout the year.  The service started in the late evening and continued through mid-night, greeting the New Year - 2011 - praising and worshiping God. As always, the church was packed and traditionally on New Year's eve everyone gives their testimony of God's grace in their life through the year. This year it wasn't so.

My younger brother was the first one to testify; it surprised me (pleasantly) that he stood up the first to testify. He spoke of how fragile life was. He is physically a very strong young man, but this past year he suffered from a herniated disc that practically immobilized him for several weeks. Though he is doing a lot better, it has not been the same. He spoke of how what we take pride in is so fleeting, there one minute and gone the next.

As he was testifying, the Holy Spirit prompted my heart to testify and exhort the church about human pride and how God hates it. In the book of Jeremiah, prophet Jeremiah talks about it and how God rots away human pride. I waited, and my sister got up and testified. I waited, unsure, as others were getting up,  if I should get up and say an exhortation that may be perceived the wrong way. As I debated on whether to get up next, next, next, next, time ran out. It was time for the pastor to give his sermon. Testimonies were to continue the following evening, on Saturday, January 1st, 2011, during the evening meeting, but I didn't go to church that evening.

Next day, Sunday morning, we went to the worship service and there was a visiting pastor. His message that morning was about Human Pride and how God hates it. Pride comes in many forms, including false humility. It also can be spiritual pride,

• should I think in my heart that I can pray better than my brother, that's pride speaking.
• should I think I understand the word of God better than my brother, that's pride speaking.
• should I think I can preach better than my brother, that's pride speaking
• should I think that I have more of the Holy Spirit in me than my brother that's my pride speaking. 
• should I think that I have the gift of speaking in tongues more than my brother, that's my pride speaking.
• should I think that I am more humble than my brother, that's pride speaking. 
• should I consider myself better than my brother in whatever shape or form, that's my pride speaking.

Pride is not from God.

As the sermon was going on, I remembered the verse from the book of Isaiah that God's Word cannot be stopped from achieving its goal...

I didn't stand to deliver God's message, and God brought another into the church, an outsider, to deliver God's word to the church.

Year 2011 was proclaimed the "Year of harvest" by our pastor. If we are to have a good harvest for Christ, one needs to be without pride and false humility!