Healing

As it happened, Publius’s father was ill with fever and dysentery. Paul went in and prayed for him, and laying his hands on him, he healed him.

Acts of the Apostles 28:8 NLT
Just before this scripture Paul had just survived being killed by the guards on a ship so he wouldn’t escape. He survived being killed by the actual ship being wrecked by the storm and ship crashing. Now at this time he has survived being bitten by a poisonous snake by the fire on the beach. All these things were done in front of people and was expected to die in each on of them. In this particular moment as the scripture tells us he has survived these things and now is at this man’s fathers house who has a intestinal infection and can’t get well. After being watched and expected to die 3 different times Paul is at this man’s home who is sick and can’t get well. Paul lays his hands on him and heals the man. I say it again Paul was supposed to die 3 times and the last thing that happened to him was being bitten by a poisonous snake on the hand and was supposed to die and everyone waited for him to swell up or drop dead. With those same hands he was bitten with he went and healed a man that had a internal disease.
HERE IT IS…
You were not supposed to be here. You should have been taken out along time ago.  You have had assassination attempts against you, you have been in wrecks that should have killed you. You have even been in a poisonous state that people waited for you to to give up, walk away, and drop at a moment’s notice. Can I just tell you that the things that have happened to you publicly is what is changing you internally. You may think you can’t be used because of what you have done, but those same poisonous hands that were doing the dirt, will heal the pain of someone else. God allows you to be infected with stuff to heal you so that you can heal infected people. Your greater than you think. Your pain is not the end. Your life is not over. Your healing is here.

 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.

Psalms 27:2 KJV

Ask

What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.

James 4:1‭-‬3 NLT
I have looked at people and seen people that didn’t go to church, didn’t have a relationship with God, and was not planning on it and had everything. I’m talking about cars, house, money, no care in the world. Shoes, clothes, the girl, just the life and wondered what am I doing wrong? What is that they are doing or not doing that keeps them in this lavish life and I am just making it. I am pulling from all sides trying to get the ends to meet and still can’t. These folks are not in church every Sunday, no bible study, prayer meeting, BTU, conferences and everything else but has all that I want in and out of life. What is it that I need to change? Thought about going out and doing what they did. Thought about doing what I saw others do to get it. Wanted to have all that they had so bad I almost did it. I wanted it because it was pleasurable to me. It would fulfill that carnal side of me. It would give me what I wanted not what I needed and probably land me where I didn’t want to be. 
HERE IT IS…
THE SCRIPTURE SAYS you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask for it. See what I came to realize in that moment is that they take their fortune from others, while I can be given it from the one who owns it. The writer tells us that we see all the things that we want from looking at someone else’s life, instead of looking at the one who can give it to us. 
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

Matthew 6:33 NLT
Stop looking for all the stuff of life and wishing you had it, and look at the one who gave you life to give you all the stiff you could ever ask or imagine. 

Treasure

We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News.

Colossians 1:3‭-‬5 NLT
I love movies and especially science fiction. Their is a movie called pirates of the Caribbean that I love to watch and it has become a intriguing to me. What I do is try to rationalize the movie as if it was real life. As I look at this movie I see that these pirates are chasing after a hidden buried treasure from a map that they found or received some way or another. As pirates it was their way of life to find maps, authenticate them as best as they could from things they have heard and go find it. The only thing they have to go off of is the things they heard, believed, and searched for it. It’s the treacherous waters and storms they have to endure to go after this treasure that they don’t know if it’s true or not. Yet they still go through all of these dangerous obstacles to try and find this treasure. 

What makes them keep going? 

What makes them want to continue to try and find this hidden buried treasure?

Is it the travel and seeing different lands?

Is it the treasure itself? 
HERE IT IS…
What would our life be like if we were pirates after God? We don’t have to search for anything hidden or buried. We have a treasure that is stored up for us in heaven waiting on us, when all we have to do is follow his word. That’s what Paul is saying here to the Colossians. He is telling them I see and have heard of your faith to God through Jesus because of what God has stored up for you. Paul said they have a confident hope in God. 

What is your hope in? 

The Colossians have a hope and faith that what they are doing for God, that God has a treasure stored up for them in heaven. 

Choose

“I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other!  But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!

Revelation 3:15‭-‬16 NLT

How many of us know of someone that we considered 2 faced? Right now we can all think of someone that is always one way with you but different with or after they have been with someone else. That person that you can look at and see that they are one way in front of you but behind closed doors they live a different life. We all know of that person, or seen that person. The reality of it it is that we all have been that person and some living it now. I’m not talking about being that person just with people, but we all have been with God. We have all been that church going, choir singing, ushering, praise dancer, club going, weed smoking, drunken person. The issue that comes with that is that of which the old saints used to say, “you cannot straddle the fence, you have to choose a side.”. 

HERE IT IS…

Don’t get me wrong God still loves you but at some point in your life you have to choose. You have to make a decision to be either hot or cold, good or bad, Christian or not. We all have issues we all have problems but what God tells us is that you cannot live a double life because that’s not his will. What if God went through all that trouble of sending himself through Jesus as the messiah and he decided at the last minute he wasn’t going to doe for you? 

Aye Rev, that’s to far?

No it’s not because that’s what we do to God everyday. We pray and pray and pray and then leave our house and forget what conversation we just had with him. 

But if you refuse to serve the Lord , then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord .”

Joshua 24:15 NLT

1 word

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Galatians 5:22‭-‬23 NLT
This morning I asked each one of my kids what was their word for today. I told them to choose one word and to use that word for today. Here is what they said;
Q – positivity

Tay – encouragement

TY – leader

Camille – focus

Kiarra – work
I told them that today to focus in these words through out the day. When something comes up to focus on that word and to help someone else using that word. We will be surprised at what 1 word will do for a person. Here in the scripture God gives us 9 that can help us through our daily life. These words Paul says there is no law against these. 
HERE IT IS…
What’s your word for today? 

What will be your thing that you concentrate on today? What can you do to uplift someone and yourself today? Who will you lead? 

Who will you encourage? 

Who will you lead? 

What will you change from being negative to a positive? 

What’s your focus? 

How much work will you put into that thing God put in front of you? 

Find your word, find your way, and find your praise…

It’s him working through me

For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church. But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.

1 Corinthians 15:9‭-‬10 NLT
Remember when you were in that place in your life where you were just out in the world going crazy. I mean, when you were doing it you thought it was just the best thing and fun. But now you look back and think to yourself, “I was tripping”, right? You look back and just see where and what you were doing and how bad you were. It often may bring to your mind “God why me?”. Not as in why do I have to go through it, but instead, God why did you choose me? It’s hard to believe that as bad as we were God still saw the good in us. As bad as we were God decided to save us. As bad as we were God said that he will give us life more abundantly. 
HERE IT IS…
Paul says;
But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.

1 Corinthians 15:10 NLT
It was not you who got you out but God. 

It was not you who saved you, but God. 

It was not you who drove you home when you were drunk, but God. 

It wasn’t you who protected you, but God. 

Truth is whatever you are now, God did it. Pastor Marvin Saap said in a song that, he saw the best in me.
What is in you is greater than what your past was. 

Humility

Then the Assyrian king’s chief of staff told them to give this message to Hezekiah: “This is what the great king of Assyria says: What are you trusting in that makes you so confident? Do you think that mere words can substitute for military skill and strength? Who are you counting on, that you have rebelled against me?

2 Kings 18:19‭-‬20 NLT

When you are faced with a problem or issue a situation of some kind what do you do? When things arise what’s the very first thing you do? Call that family member or friend? Do you get stressed out and worry? Or do you just give in? The king here was being pressed on every side. He was being challenged and threatened to have his people overtaken by another kingdom. He was being pushed into a corner and had no way out. He was over powered in everyway and physically could not win. When you read 2kings 18-19 you will see that the Assyria was so confident in his army and his skill of war that he had already counted the victory of capturing Judah. But, he was confused as to why king Hezekiah was not seemingly shaken. Look at what the king of Judah did. 

HERE IT IS…

When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes and put on burlap and went into the Temple of the Lord .

2 Kings 19:1 NLT

King Hezekiah humbled himself first before he did anything else. Where it says he tore his clothes that was a sign in this reading that he tore his clothes which was a sign of humility. Then he went to the temple to have a talk with God. 

What are you saying rev? 

Sometimes what we do is we try to solve these issues and problems ourselves instead of talking to God. When we do go, we go with a arrogance to God. He has given us this opportunity because he loves us, not because your so good you deserve it. Go to with a humble heart and mind that you can receive his answer when he gives it. 

Shine

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.

John 1:5 NLT
My phone just like many of yours has a light on it to indicate through different colors what has just come through. It alerts you of what had just come through whether it be a email, or text, or Facebook, what ever you have setup as a color, the phone will flash as that. Sometimes my phone will be red, or blue, or green when the indicator light goes off. What I had to start doing at night was turn my phone over on its screen at night because the indicator light would be flashing or just stay on because of what just came through. It was so bright it would illuminate the wall next to my bed and would at times catch me off guard when I wake up. The light would even be able to be seen when I turned the phone over. It would outline my phone on my nightstand. It just seemed that the darker I made it or tried to hide it it seem to shine brighter or found away to illuminate through whatever I used to try and block it. 
HERE IT IS…
Are you in a dark place?
Do you feel you can’t see your way out of a situation?
Do you feel that your darkness is overpowering?
Even though we are going through or have been through something like this their is something that can brighten your situation. 

The bible says:
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

John 8:12 NLT
There is a light that no darkness can cover or extinguish. The truth of the matter is that the darker it may seem to get, (if allowed) Jesus will shine brighter and illuminate things that you normally could not see. 

 

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 5:16 KJV

He will get in

The ropes of death entangled me; floods of destruction swept over me. The grave wrapped its ropes around me; death laid a trap in my path. But in my distress I cried out to the Lord ; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.

Psalms 18:4‭-‬6 NLT
In this life we will encounter many issues we will encounter things that makes us feel it’s over for us. Their are things that we will face that will seemingly take us out. We will be confused about things, we can feel over taken, we can even feel like we were setup and we have one foot in the grave and the other out. This issue, problem, despairing task that is upon us makes us count ourselves out. 
The song says; but the master of the sea, he heard my despairing cry. 
HERE IT IS…
But in my distress I cried out to the Lord ; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.

Psalms 18:6 NLT
The writer here says BUT, in my distress I cried out and he heard my cry. When we think it’s over sometimes even though your in your mess you have to cry out loudly, publicly, physically, vocally to God. He says that he cried out not that he would remove the situation, not to take him out the situation, But he asked for help IN the situation. My message to you today is that you don’t just automatically ask and expect God to remove it. It is my prayer that we ask God to get in it with us. Don’t ask God to take it, but to help us through it. Their is a praise in the pressing. Their is a blessing in the brokenness. Their is a breakthrough in the breaking. I dare you to ask God to to hop in your situation with you. The second part of that song is, from the waters lifted me now safe am I. For him to lift you out he has to get in it. 
But in my distress I cried out to the Lord ; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.

Psalms 18:6 NLT

Recognize

Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And at that moment he disappeared!

Luke 24:31 NLT
People always say their is a difference in hearing and listening. They always say their is a difference in seeing and recognition. I truly believe those statements. Where as without medical issues everyone can hear and see, but not everyone listens and recognizes. Their are times that we fail to do those 2 things when needed to. For us to understand better we have to be able to actively listen and truly recognize things. Even though it may not be what you want to hear, we still need to listen. Even though we try to shut our eyes at things in our life to avoid dealing with it, we have to recognize it. Just because it hurts to listen or recognize it does not meant it won’t help us. 
HERE IT IS…
Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

Luke 24:27 NLT
Even though it was hard for them to accept that Jesus was crucified, died, buried, and resurrected. They still didn’t know who was talking to them about himself. We often times have to stop looking for our own understanding of things and just be able to understand exactly what the word says. We try to make the scripture fit us, instead of allowing the scripture to change us. Jesus wasn’t recognized until he did something with them that they recognized. It wasn’t his voice, or his physical appearance, nor his teaching. It wasn’t until Jesus had a personal communion session with those 2 followers that they recognized him. Don’t get so caught up in the scheme of things that you miss your opportunity to truly be in his presence. We get caught up in trying to make sense in it when sometimes it may not be for us to understand, but an opportunity to be in his presence.