Be Watchful

 

1 Corinthians 16:13

Be watchful; stand firm in the faith; act like men; be strong.

Psalm 27:11

Because of my adversaries, show me Your Way, LORD, and lead me on a level path.

BE WATCHFUL

    We are surrounded on every side: enemies to the north, the south, the east, and the west. Encompassed by those who hate us, who seek to tear us down and in doing so attempt to undermine our faith in God and Jesus Christ. 

    Our adversaries are many and some of them we cannot even see. Therefore, our battle to overcome the onslaught must begin in our hearts, under the watchful eyes of The Holy Spirit. He it is Who strengthens our resolve to "stand fast" in The Word of The Lord. 

STAND FIRM IN THE FAITH

    Our Straight Way is Jesus Christ, and Him crucified and resurrected. It is His Love growing in us that gives us confidence to move forward, regardless of who speaks against us. For the Love of God has been extended to us through His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ. It is this Love, this gospel message of salvation through the blood of The Lamb, which compels us to speak out and speak up. 

    We call out to you who have not yet believe, we send forth a cry--with The Holy Spirit--"Come to Jesus." We whisper in the valleys, shout among the mountains, holler o'er the raging seas. God is Love. 

    Romans 1:16 

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is The Power of God unto salvation to every one that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

    2 Corinthians 4:8-10

We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.

Always bearing about in the body the dying of The Lord Jesus, that The Life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

ACT LIKE MEN/BE MEN OF COURAGE

    Deuteronomy 31:6

Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God Who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

    Our courage comes from our unrelentless faith in Christ Jesus. It is He, through His Holy Spirit, Who empowers us with Himself; in Him, as the verse reminds us, "we live, and move, and have our being." How can we not but move across these dark landscapes and shine The Light of God's Love outwards? 

    We are the people of God and we follow Him Who is our Eternal Light. Where He goes, we go. We look not to the right, nor to the left, but straight ahead. When we place our feet firmly on His pathway, and set our faces to focus on what lies ahead, then the distractions of our enemies cannot faze us. The finish line is just ahead. And we are about to cross it. 

    Psalm 5:8

Lead me, O LORD, in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make straight Your Way before me.

    Isaiah 42:16

I will lead the blind by a way they did not know; I will guide them on unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light before them and rough places into level ground. These things I will do for them, and I will not forsake them.

    Isaiah 30:21

And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”

    John 14:6

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” 

    John 16:13

“However, when The Spirit of Truth comes, He will guide you into all Truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.”

BE STRONG

    Our strength is the joy we have in The God of our Salvation. If we are not a joyful people praising our God, then we are living a full and satisfactory life in Christ Jesus. Our tears soak the altar of our prayers; joy is our reward. 

    We know that "the joy of The Lord is our Strength". This is more than happiness in our salvation. It is a deeper walk with Christ. For in this walk, joy lands in the middle of our trials, and our walk is not hampered. 

    Strength in The Lord enables us to leap over walls meant to keep us out. Here we are surrounded by our enemies, and we are leaping, and walking, and praising God. Our enemies watch us and wonder. They torment us, persecute us, kill us for His Name's sake. And we rise up in worship and praise to and for our God.

    Our faith is not determined by a lack of struggles and trials, but by a magnitude of such things. We are, indeed, strong in The Lord. And together this body of Christ, His church, should be united in one common goal: preach the gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ until the whole world hears. For it is then that Christ will return for His church. 

    Ready. Set. Go. 

Be Strong

 

Ephesians 6:10
Finally, be strong in The Lord [draw your strength from Him and be empowered through your union with Him] and in the power of His [boundless] might.

BE STRONG IN THE LORD

    I've been talking about strength-training for the last few days or so, so coming back to the BE verses should be fairly simple for me to do. I hope. Today we're encouraged to Be Strong. 

    The desert flower in this photo is called a Fairy Duster which grows in the Sonoran, Chihuahua, and Mojave deserts. And in The Domes in Milwaukee, WI, which is where I photographed it. 

    I'm using it because it appears fragile in nature, but is actually quite a strong flower. It thrives in desert heat, can withstand droughts once its roots are fully established, and needs only a minimal amount of water. It can reach a height of 1-5 feet and provides meals for birds, butterflies, and bees. Because it stands tall it also provides shelter from the heat and predators for desert wildlife. 

    Why do I bring all this up? We, the Christians, are the Fairy Dusters of the kingdom field in which we thrive. We, too, once our roots (our faith) is fully grafted into The Vine (Jesus Christ) are able to thrive and provide for those around us, as well. 

    We are strong in The Lord when The Lord is allowed to take root in us. Our faith is based on The Promises of God, which are many, but most especially on The Promise of Salvation and the indwelling power of The Holy Spirit when we believe on The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation, our deliverance, and our sanctification. 

    It is not enough to believe this and then go about our daily lives as if nothing has changed within us. For should we surrender to the temptations of sin and continue to live a sin-filled lifestyle, then truly nothing did change within us. Our belief system is then flawed and we cannot be strong in The Lord, for sin still reigns within us. 

    Even if the other thief had said he believed, thinking that would benefit him, by the very words that came of out of his mouth, we know that his heart wasn't right, and his words would not have been received by The Lord. It is not just the words we speak, but the heart must believe that Jesus Christ is Lord; receive Him into their hearts and their lives; receive The Holy Spirit that He may empower them to live righteous and holy lives. 

    That is how we can Be Strong in The Lord and in The Power of His Might.  We must make a conscious decision to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. We must be able to hear with our hearts and speak from the heart that Jesus Christ is Lord. An infant cannot make this decision. Only one who can testify to God's saving grace through Jesus Christ His Only Begotten Son can make the distinction between sin and grace, whether audibly or by sign. 

    Only then can we say, "I am strong in The Lord and The Power of His Might."